Blake Snell Learning & Trying To Be ‘A Little Wiser’

Blake Snell made his first start of 2026 for the Los Angeles Dodgers after missing the start of the season due to shoulder fatigue.

There was both good and bad in Snell’s first start. The left-hander only pitched three innings and allowed five runs, four of which were earned, but his stuff was in a great spot, as evidenced by the 16 swings and misses he recorded and only two hard-hit balls given up.

Snell got unlucky with a lot of weak contact that turned into hits, leaving him disappointed with the results. But overall, he was happy with how he felt and believes his debut was a strong foundation to build on.

“Yeah, learned a lot,” Snell said. “Obviously, frustrated. The goal is to give up no runs, so giving up five is pretty frustrating.

“But, I mean, I learned a lot. I got to use the fastball a little more; the zone is smaller than it was last year, that’s what I learned today. I was just missing a little bit. But I feel really good, the stuff is really good.

“Being able to start to read swings and what people are thinking and doing is getting better. So excited about that. But, yeah, just a lot to break down. But obviously, three and 77 pitches is not where I want to be. But yeah, just a weird game.”

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts agreed with Snell’s assessment and saw more good than bad from his starter, despite the final line score.

“Yeah, it was his first outing back,” Roberts said. “I thought the stuff was good, I really did. There was a lot of swing and miss in there. It’s baseball in the sense of you’re going to get unlucky with some infield hits, and that’s part of it, some soft contact.

“Got to give credit to those guys. Those guys put together good at-bats. They put the ball in play, and then with that, you get breaks.

“I think to be a little critical, there were a couple of bad walks in there that kind of extended innings, to Baldwin, I think. But outside of that first one, I thought it was fine, something to build off of.”

Saturday was previously expected to be Snell’s final rehab game, but after the injury to Tyler Glasnow, the Dodgers decided to cut the rehab short and activate him early. Snell said he was fully on board with that decision, and that it was even his preference.

“No, I’m ready to go,” Snell answered when asked if skipping the rehab played a part in the final line score. “Yeah, there’s no excuse. I feel good. The stuff’s good.

“So I just got to become a better pitcher and do that quickly. I have a lot of confidence I’ll do that. I really like where I’m at. So for me to get called up. I feel really good. I wanted that start, so I need to get better and make sure I can cover the innings and help the bullpen more.”

Blake Snell focused on being wiser

The most encouraging thing for Snell is having his health back. After dealing with shoulder issues throughout 2025 and to begin this year, Snell told Roberts this is the best he’s felt in a while.

“I feel really good,” Snell said. “I did a lot, changed a lot, worked really hard, and I like the way my body feels. Even after three innings and 77 pitches, I feel really good. I feel like I’m going to recover good. So I’m excited about that. But yeah, I got a lot of work to do to get ready for the next start, not put the bullpen in a position to cover six innings.”

Part of feeling so good is due to all the work Snell did in the offseason to prepare himself and take better care of his body. The early results have been encouraging for the 33-year-old.

“I mean, all my injuries have been inflammation-based,” Snell said. “I’m getting older, I’ve got to be a little wiser. So the nutritionist, chef and Pilates have really helped me a lot. Yeah, just trying to get better and make sure I can pitch as long as I want to pitch.”