The Los Angeles Dodgers famously benefited during the 2020 World Series from the Tampa Bay Rays pulling Blake Snell from a game too early.
On that night, Snell was doing his best Sandy Koufax impression, and yet Rays manager Kevin Cash followed the base-level analytics and avoided leaving his lefty in too long. At least in part because of that move, the Dodgers won the World Series, and the Rays came up short.
Six years later, the Dodgers may have left Snell in too long.
Snell had journeyed from the Rays to the Padres to the Dodgers. Many of the game’s best players end up in Los Angeles eventually.
And for the most part, Snell has been awesome in L.A., including in the middle innings on this night.
But on his first pitch of the game, he gave up a solo homer to Jackson Chourio. And to the last two batters he faced, Snell gave up bat flip-inducing bombs.
The Dodgers, six years after winning a title because the other team pulled Snell too soon, had Snell on their team this time and left him in too long.
Was Blake Snell in Too Long?
It’s easy to say in retrospect that it was too long a stint for Snell.
That may not have seemed the case before Snell got to Jake Bauers’ spot in the Milwaukee Brewers order.
But then Bauers worked an 11-pitch at bat and blasted a go-ahead two-run home run.
And then the next hitter, Garrett Mitchell, turned on a hanging curveball to make the lead 4-2.
All of a sudden, Snell had been in too long.
The Dodgers have actually gone against the grain in recent years in the playoffs, throwing their starting pitchers more than anyone else (even if that’s occasionally out of the bullpen). They know they have the top starters in the sport, and they lean into that in a way that works for them.
But in the modern game, almost every other team would’ve pulled Snell by that point in Wednesday night’s game. They certainly would’ve pulled him after the first homer.
On this night, though, the Dodgers left Snell in, and the Brewers teed off twice before he exited the game.
Baseball History Loves Irony
It seems the baseball gods must love irony or humor or something. The game always seems to come back around.
In this reversal of history, the Dodgers come out on the wrong side. If the home runs by Milwaukee hold up, the Brewers will take a commanding 3-0 series lead in the NLCS.
On the other side of the bracket, the Rays are tied 1-1 in the ALCS with the Cleveland Guardians.
Tampa Bay could make the World Series, and Snell could end up watching from home.
It would’ve taken more work for the Dodgers to come back in the series against the Brewers, but in the Snell decision that manager Dave Roberts made on Wednesday night, much of the comeback hope vanished. Snell had been left in too long, and L.A.’s season was officially on the brink.
Dodgers’ Blake Snell Decision Shows Baseball Gods Have a Sense of Humor