May 19, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani (17) is greeted by first baseman Freddie Freeman (5) after hitting a solo home run against the Arizona Diamondbacks during the sixth inning at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

Dodgers Newest Star Admits Teammate is 'Better Than I Thought'

Originally posted on Los Angeles Dodgers on SI
By Gabe Smallson | Last updated May 25, 2025 1:00 PM ET

The Los Angeles Dodgers have been accustomed to Freddie Freeman's greatness for quite some time now, but one of the newest members of the Dodgers was shocked after finally seeing the 2024 World Series MVP's process up close.

On an episode of the Dodger Talk podcast, Cy Young award winner Blake Snell spoke on working with Freeman during the southpaw's first season in L.A.

“He’s better than I thought. I just like his consistency, his work ethic," Snell said. "Everything he does is consistent. Same guy every day, doing the same thing, same approach, same intent. It makes sense why he’s as good as he is.”

Freeman is currently crushing at the plate this season with National League-leading marks in batting average (.361), slugging percentage (.646), OPS (1.076) and OPS+ (202). For context, the MLB average OPS+ is 100.

The 35-year-old is on pace to finish with the best batting average, on-base percentage, and OPS (excluding the 2020 season) in his career.

Snell is no stranger to greatness himself.

He has earned a pair of Cy Young awards and an All-Star selection over the course of his 10 seasons in MLB. Snell also finished with the lowest ERA in the league twice over the course of his career, with one of those being the lowest in all of MLB when he threw a 2.25 mark in 2023.

Snell, after inking a five-year, $182 million deal this offseason, has only started two games in a Dodgers uniform and has since landed on the 60-day injured list due to shoulder inflammation.

He recently revealed that he shouldn't have pushed himself to pitch to start the season, but spoke on the pain finally dissipating in his arm.

“The pain is finally going away,” Snell said. “I haven’t played catch without pain in probably since we were in Japan. I’m pretty excited about that. Just feels good to finally play catch again and be able to work on something.”

Snell will look to write this next chapter of his MLB career, and build upon what has been a bleak start to his Dodgers tenure.

This article first appeared on Los Angeles Dodgers on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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