Scott Boras isn’t the only person to blame for Blake Snell’s season going the way it has.

Apr 19, 2024; San Francisco, California, USA; San Francisco Giants pitcher Blake Snell (7) reacts after walking an Arizona Diamondbacks batter during the fourth inning at Oracle Park. Mandatory Credit: John Hefti-USA TODAY Sports / John Hefti-USA TODAY Sports

Reigning NL Cy Young winner Blake Snell held out all offseason for the mega free agent deal he had been waiting for. Unfortunately, no matter how hard his agent Scott Boras tried, that deal never came.

Eventually, Snell settled on a deal with the San Francisco Giants just ten days before Opening Day. It’s not what he wanted, but the deal with the Giants gave Snell an opportunity to have another great year and finally cash in the following offseason. Three months into his Giants career, it’s safe to say things haven’t gone as planned.

Snell has made six starts for the Giants, going 0-3 with a 9.51 ERA in those appearances, looking like a shell of the pitcher he was in 2023. Not only has he struggled on the mound, but he has missed time due to injury as well. He’s currently working his way back from a left groin strain, and unfortunately, things aren’t going well.

In his latest rehab start for the Sacramento River Cats, San Francisco’s Triple-A affiliate, Snell managed to go just 1.2 innings, allowing three hits and two earned runs while walking three. He did not record a single strikeout. Snell’s postgame comments pointed at the fact that despite his struggles, the Giants might be rushing him back, which is certainly not good for his long-term health.

Giants appear to be doing worst thing imaginable with Blake Snell

After getting swept by the Cardinals, the Giants need a spark now more than ever as they continue to fall further out of the NL Wild Card race. With several starting pitchers including Alex Cobb, Kyle Harrison, and Robbie Ray all sidelined, San Francisco really needs Snell back. Even if he isn’t the Cy Young version of himself, the Giants need him.

While that might be the case, Snell only wants to pitch in the majors when he feels that he’s 100% healthy. It’s abundantly clear that after his latest outing, he’s not there yet. Just look at what he had to say after Sunday’s start.

“I haven’t felt like myself yet,” Snell told reporters in Sacramento (h/t The San Francisco Chronicle’s Shayna Rubin). “It’s just, ‘We need you. We need you. We need you.’ It’s not like, ‘Let’s get him right,’ and I have to deal with it. 

“I want to be healthy and 100 percent and I haven’t been. I’ve just been fighting to rush back. So that’s my take. I’m frustrated with that. And you don’t get the product of what I should be and it’s just frustrating. I want to go out there and dominate and pitch the way that I pitch but it’s more important that I’m out there.”

Snell appears to be eluding to feeling pressure from the Giants saying that they need him, and he’s expressing frustration that they’re not concerned with his long-term health. Snell wants to pitch the way he knows he can, which can’t happen if he’s rushed back before he’s ready.

The Giants, a team trying to hold onto their season, have every reason to rush Snell back. The flip side, of course, is that Snell, a pitcher on a short-term deal, has every reason to only pitch when he’s 100% healthy so his numbers are where he needs them to be for him to cash in.

Boras is to blame for Snell not getting the long-term security that he should’ve gotten after he won the second Cy Young Award of his career, but if the Giants are rushing him back, they’re to blame for potentially putting Snell’s long-term health at risk.

They need him, but Snell needs to get himself right first and foremost. Hopefully they’ll allow him the chance to do just that.