Phillies come out of nowhere to enter race for top free agent starter

It remains to be seen what the Philadelphia Phillies will do in free agency, but the front office will be busy. The Phillies have a talented, veteran-led team heading into 2025. They’ve made three consecutive playoff appearances but haven’t been able to complete the ultimate goal of winning a World Series championship. 

Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski has a track record of making big moves to compete for a championship. Managing partner and principal owner John Middleton is one of the most invested owners in Major League Baseball and wants nothing more than to bring the trophy back to the City of Brotherly Love.

The rumor mill is heating up, and the Phillies may be in on one of the top free agent starting pitchers available.

Phillies come out of nowhere to enter race for Blake Snell

The two biggest storylines of the Phillies offseason to this point have been the Alec Bohm trade rumors and the Juan Soto sweepstakes. The Phillies may now be in the race for two-time Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell.

A panel of 18 team executives and baseball insiders were asked where the top three free agent aces with major league experience will sign ahead of the 2025 season. Those three pitchers are Corbin Burnes, Max Fried and Snell.

There were 16 out of the 18 executives and insiders who voted for Snell’s next team. Seven of them predict the one-time All-Star will re-sign with the San Francisco Giants where he spent the 2024 season. The team with the second most votes was the Phillies.

Snell spent the first five years of his career with the Tampa Bay Rays. His best season came in 2018 when he had a 21-5 record with a 1.89 ERA through 31 starts. The left-hander was named to the first and only All-Star Game of his career and won his first of two Cy Young Awards.

Snell moved on to the San Diego Padres in 2021, spending three seasons there. He won the second Cy Young of his career in 2023 in which he posted a 2.25 ERA. 

Snell missed some time with two different injuries in 2024. He suffered an adductor strain early in the season forcing him to miss a few weeks and a groin injury in early June keeping him out for about a month.

Even with the injuries, the 31-year-old finished the 2024 season strong. Snell had a 5-3 record with a 3.12 ERA in 20 starts, including 0.75 ERA in July, 1.64 ERA in August and 1.00 ERA in September.

The Phillies could use starting pitching help after a nightmare performance from the No. 5 spot this past season. Snell is expected to sign a five-year deal with an average annual salary of $26.3 million, per Spotrac. It will be interesting to see the level of interest, if any, the Phillies have in him.

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