The San Diego Padres defeated the Tampa Bay Rays 2-0 on Saturday. Blake Snell led the way with zero runs given up in six innings. He also set an MLB strikeout record held only by three other players.
Snell struck out 12 on the day. He joined Fernando Tatis, Jr. as recent Padres record-setters. The rest of the Padres' staff shut the door with five additional strikeouts.
Afterwards it was revealed that Snell did something only three others have done since 1961. He struck out nine batters or more for the second time in two starts. The feat places him in elite company with Randy Johnson, Jacob deGrom, and Pedro Martinez.
Snell has a record of 3-6 so far on the season with a 3.48 ERA and 93 strikeouts. He struck out five of the first six Rays batters he faced and continued the momentum into the sixth inning.
The Padres moved to 34-36 on the season, eight games out of first place in the NL West behind the Arizona Diamondbacks. Snell became emotional after the incredible performance and spoke highly of his bond with his teammates. Snell has particularly taken a liking to Gary Sanchez, the team's catcher.
“A lot of those guys were in it from the day I walked in the door as a professional,” Snell said. “So yeah, emotional. It's cool to pitch in front of people that have supported you, raised you, challenged you. There's just a lot that they've done that made me who I am today.”
Snell has an ERA of 0.60 over his last five starts. He appears to be recapturing the form that made him a Cy Young winner in 2018 with the Rays.
“Many of us have seen Blake throw very well,” Rays Manager Kevin Cash said. “That was a very strong outing. He had everything going.”
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