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Could a big name Free Agent fall in Love with Seattle and sign with the Mariners for Valentine's Day?
Blake Snell
Blake Snell is a Washington native and he has been seen at local sporting events this offseason, begging the question, does he want to come home to Seattle? He is coming off of his second Cy Young Award and has not gotten the contract he was hoping for because he is still waiting for someone to fall in love with him this February.
Similar to the rationale for signing Jordan Montgomery, the Mariners would be able to push one of their young starters to the minor leagues with the addition of Blake Snell. He would add a left handed element to the Mariners rotation that they do not currently have. The Mariners could also go to a six-man rotation if they wanted to with Snell slotting in behind Castillo, Kirby, and Gilbert.
In 2023, Snell had a fantastic season for the San Diego Padres. He started 32 games, pitched 180 innings, and had a 2.25 ERA which earned him a 4.1 WAR according to Fangraphs. Snell is a strikeout pitcher who gets lots of swings and misses but does struggle with walking too many batters. The Mariners' pitching brain trust could possibly fix that issue and help him walk fewer hitters and stay in ballgames longer.
This possible marriage seems the most likely because of the hometown connection between Snell and Seattle. He could be ready to come back home and settle down with the Mariners and try to bring a World Series trophy to his hometown.