San Francisco Giants pitcher Blake Snell's ridiculous 15-strikeout outing against the Colorado Rockies was not only impressive, but it was historic.

Snell, who fooled the Rockies for 15 Ks and allowed just two hits, did all of that in six innings of work, making him the first player to do that in about 125 years.

“According to the Giants, Blake Snell is the first pitcher in A.L./N.L. history (since 1901) with 15 strikeouts in a start of 6.0 or fewer innings,” KTXL Sacramento reporter Sean Cunningham wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

Snell also came very, very close to tying the Giants single-game strikeouts franchise record, which is co-held by Jason Schmidt, who did it in 2006, and Christy Mathewson, who set the mark 102 years before that, according to Sarah Langs:

“most strikeouts in a game, Giants since 1901:

6/6/2006 Jason Schmidt: 16
10/3/1904 Christy Mathewson: 16
7/27/2024 Blake Snell: 15
7/27/2009 Tim Lincecum: 15
7/22/1966 Gaylord Perry: 15
5/26/1932 Carl Hubbell: 15”

Giants pitcher Blake Snell in trade rumors

San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Blake Snell (7) throws a pitch against the New York Yankees during the first inning at Oracle Park.
Darren Yamashita-USA TODAY Sports

What made Blake Snell's performance against Colorado even more impressive is the fact that he has been mentioned as a potential trade piece as the MLB trade deadline approaches. After an offseason in which his desired market seemed to dry up, Snell signed a two-year, $62 million deal with the San Francisco Giants, with the second year being a player option valued at $38.5 million.

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Snell nor the Giants have been particularly strong this season; the 2023 NL Cy Young winner has a 5.10 ERA and his highest hits-per-9 since 2020, while San Francisco is 52-55 and are fourth in the NL West. With the Giants' playoff odds being placed at just 17.6% by FanGraphs, the Giants may feel compelled to trade Snell before the deadline to a team more well-suited to competing in October.

The New York Yankees, who seemed to be sniffing around Snell when he was a free agent in the offseason, are reportedly one of six teams to “check in” on Snell, according to MLB insider Jon Heyman.

As for the trade rumors, Snell said that he doesn't expect to be shipped out of San Francisco as long as the Giants, who can complete a four-game sweep of the Rockies today, keep on winning.

“We just got to win,” Snell said after his 15-strikeout performance. “If we win, I ain’t going nowhere. At least I believe that.”