Los Angeles starting pitcher Blake Snell has long expressed his admiration for veteran left-hander Clayton Kershaw and talked about what he learned from the future Hall of Famer throughout the 2025 season.
“Yeah. That’s interesting, as everyone says, well, what about that? How do we get there?” Snell said. “But it’s just a conversation, it’s just a question. You just ask a question and we just have a normal conversation. But when I ask a question, I think, why did you do this, or why did you think that way, or what do you think is the best part of your game? And when you ask that question, he answers.”
“And it’s like how can you incorporate that into your game and what does that look like for you? You’re ultimately building the best version of yourself, so you have to figure that part out. But Kershaw, his best thing is competing. He might not have anything, but he’s going to find a way to dominate because he’s so competitive. How do you learn that? You know, you have to ask questions, and then you have to understand, well, how can we do that, that’s the hard part.”
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Snell spoke about being teammates with Kershaw ahead of the season and was clearly excited to speak with the veteran to improve his game.
“I can’t wait. I told Andrew (Friedman) that I needed my locker next to him,” Snell said during the offseason. “He’s accomplished so many great things in his career, so I’m really excited to talk to him and pick his brain and learn from all of his experiences. To learn from a guy like that, I mean, you couldn’t ask for more.”
Whatever Snell learned from Kershaw, it’s clearly served him well this season. Although he did not play a full season, Snell started 11 games during the regular season and posted a 2.35 ERA, the third-lowest ERA in a single season during his career.
Snell had a solid postseason performance, posting a 2.42 ERA in four starts.
More news: announce when Shohei Ohtani and Tyler Glasnow will pitch in the World Series
The left-handed pitcher pitched an unlucky five innings in the opening game of the World Series, but will look to bounce back in the second half of the series to help the win their second consecutive title.
Photo credit: Steven Bisig-Imagn Images
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