Los Angeles left-handed pitcher Blake Snell made a Young-like performance with the Philadelphia Phillies on Wednesday night…literally.
Snell pitched seven innings of shutout baseball, earning 12 while allowing 12 hits and two walks.
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In his final two starts, Snell hit at least 11 batters, but allowed less than two hits, less than two walks, zero runs and zero extra bass hits.
The only other pitcher in MLB history to do it in the present day? Cy Young and OptaStats in 1905.
What did Blake Snell say to Dave Roberts to stay in the game?
Snell cruised through the first six innings before getting into trouble for the seventh. After retiring as the first two batters of the innings, he walked the next two, raising his unity to the plate.
Manager Dave Roberts began walking out of the dugout and potentially taking Snell, who was on the 107th pitch from the game.
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“In that situation, I know it was actually 50/50,” Roberts said after the game about whether he would take out Snell. “Obviously, 99.9% of the time I made my decision, but at that moment I was in the air.”
Snell had already created his mind.
“Please,” Snell said to Roberts. “Please protect me, I got it.”
After a short conversation, Roberts went back to the dugout and jogged. After five pitches, Snell was one of the best pitching performances of the season with his 12th strikeout of the night.
“It meant a lot that he trusted me,” Snell said. “I don’t like the bullpen finishing the innings. I’m very stubborn about it. I don’t want them to put them in that situation.
Snell did just that and joined an impressive company along the way.
Photo credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Immagn Image
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