Getty Houston Astros Jim Crane could be seeking to address a shallow rotation with marquee free agent Blake Snell.
The Houston Astros appear to have an inside track on signing Blake Snell, the reigning NL Cy Young Award winner and most accomplished free agent remaining on the market.
“The Houston Astros are at it again,” The Athletic’s MLB insider Ken Rosenthal and Astros beat reporter Chandler Rome reported. “Now, according to sources briefed on their discussions, they are engaged in a serious pursuit of left-hander Blake Snell, the best starter on the market.”
The report added that Snell is looking for a contract similar to those signed by Cody Bellinger and Matt Chapman, which were both three-year deals that included player options to opt out after each year, thus allowing them to re-test the free agent market in future offseasons and attempt to get more lucrative, long-term contracts.
“The question is whether Astros owner Jim Crane is willing to sign Snell for the $30 million to $32 million annual salary the pitcher is believed to be seeking,” according to Rosenthal and Rome.
With Blake Snell, the Houston Astros Would Answer Rotation Questions
Snell won his second career Cy Young Award in 2023 after pitching for an MLB-leading 2.25 ERA and 234 strikeouts in 32 starts for the San Diego Padres. The campaign also earned him All-MLB first team honors.
But he also issued an MLB-leading and career-high 99 walks and has pitched for 180 total innings or more in only one other season across his eight-year career. Questions about his durability and the volume of free passes he issues might explain why he has remained on the free agent market for so long into the offseason.
Despite these concerns and the high annual asking price, a fit with the Astros does make sense on paper. The team’s rotation will be without ace Justin Verlander, who will start the season on the injured list with a shoulder injury. Pitchers Lance McCullers Jr. and Luis Garcia are recovering from below injuries and will miss the first half of the season. And pitcher José Urquidy is suffering from elbow soreness as well.
“We know the Astros have serious questions in their rotation, despite a competitive roster,” Brett Taylor wrote for Bleacher Nation. “We know Blake Snell needs to sign very soon if he’s going to have a mostly-normal-full-season. We also know the Astros, for all their small-market philosophy, play in one of the largest markets in the country. They can afford Snell.”
Signing Blake Snell, the Houston Astros Would Leverage the Future for World Series Aspirations
One thing that may derail the momentum, aside from the financial cost of signing Snell, is the fact that the Astros would have to give up a future draft pick if they add him. Snell declined a qualifying offer from the Padres and, per the MLB luxury tax rules, the Astros would have to forfeit their third- and sixth-highest picks in the 2024 draft, per The Athletic. This would come after the team signed reliever Josh Hader earlier this offseason, who also declined a qualifying offer from the Padres, costing his new team their second- and fourth-highest picks for 2024.
Ultimately, a decision to sign Snell would signal that Crane wants to accelerate the Astros’ return to the World Series — a determination he has signaled recently by adding marquee pitchers in Hader and Verlander.
“The Hader contract was the biggest free-agent deal of Crane’s tenure,” Rosenthal and Rome wrote. “With Snell, the owner would be doubling down — and upping the ante in the Astros’ competition with their biggest rival, the defending World Series champion Texas Rangers.”