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Just relax, Blake Snell will be better (If not, the Rays are in trouble)

The reigning AL Cy Young winner had his worst Tropicana Field outing since the end of 2017.
 
Rays starter Blake Snell (4) wipes his face after being lifted from the game after six innings in the Rays' 5-1 loss to Houston Thursday in the season-opener at Tropicana Field. MONICA HERNDON |  Times
Rays starter Blake Snell (4) wipes his face after being lifted from the game after six innings in the Rays' 5-1 loss to Houston Thursday in the season-opener at Tropicana Field. MONICA HERNDON | Times
Published March 29, 2019

ST. PETERSBURG – The game was over. So was the illusion.

If you thought Blake Snell’s trajectory was forever skyward, then the first three innings of 2019 were a necessary reminder. Pitchers are never that close to perfection, even if Snell looked that way for much of 2018.

And it took only a handful of pitches on opening day against the Astros to make that all clear. A questionable ball-four to a No. 7 hitter, another walk to a No. 9 hitter and then an ill-advised curve to George Springer. Just like that, Snell had lost a game and his sheen of invincibility.

“That’s 100 percent on me,’’ Snell said later.

This was unlike any appearance Snell had at Tropicana Field last year, and that’s not an exaggeration. In 14 home starts in 2018, Snell never gave up more than two earned runs.

That streak ended with Springer’s three-run homer. And it got worse with solo homers from Michael Brantley and Jose Altuve in the fourth and fifth.

Cy Young vs. Cy Old? It never happened. Houston’s Justin Verlander did his part with seven mostly dominant innings, but Snell turned this duel into a dud.

“It was surprising just because we got so spoiled by Blake and how dominant he was last year,’’ Rays manager Kevin Cash said. “To see that take place right out of the gate is not what you expect. But in fairness, we all have got to allow him to have a hiccup here and there.’’

It’s true, you can’t expect Snell to be that good.

And yet the Rays may need him to be.

Tampa Bay had a .710 winning percentage when Snell started a game last year. The Rays were .519 in their other 131 games. That means he was practically the difference between a .500 season and 90 wins.

Of course, this is a new season and the Rays believe their staff is even stronger. Charlie Morton should be more dependable than Chris Archer and Tyler Glasnow will get his first shot at a full season.

So maybe Snell won’t have to win 21 again, or have an ERA under 2.00. But he is Tampa Bay’s security blanket. The guy who kept the Rays from falling into too many extended slumps.

The reality is he might once again be among the top 5 starters in the American League this season, and it could almost feel like a letdown after his mastery of 2018.

“He has to appreciate this is going to happen,’’ Cash said. “He’s just so good at evaluating himself, I know he’s going to be frustrated, disappointed. But you can’t set expectations that are unrealistic.’’

Frustrated and disappointed were understatements. Snell seemed mostly disgusted with himself once he got back to the clubhouse.

“This is what happens when you’re not as good as you should be against a good team,’’ Snell said. “I was a two-pitch guy. I’ve got to make it tougher on them.’’

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It wasn’t his relatively light workload in spring training, he said. It wasn’t that he was too nervous or excited about his first opening day assignment. It wasn’t even that he pitched all that badly.

Snell looked annoyed by his own decision-making. He thought he was too reliant on his fastball and curveball, and that’s half-true. He actually threw less fastballs and change-ups than normal, but threw almost twice as many curves. The homer by Springer was a first-pitch curve.

“He’s a four-pitch guy, and all four are plus pitches,’’ said catcher Mike Zunino. “So yeah, in retrospect, it’s easy to say we could have mixed it up a little more, but I thought his stuff was really good.’’

In case you’re wondering, this doesn’t often happen to owners of a Cy Young award. The last time a reigning winner got hit this hard in the first start of a new season was Cliff Lee 10 years ago.

Snell will be presented with his award on the field before Saturday night’s game and, if there is any sense of history in Tampa Bay, should get a standing ovation from a large crowd.

That will officially close the book on his 2018.

Three days later, he can start over again on 2019.

Contact John Romano at jromano@tampabay.com. Follow at @romano_tbtimes.




Contact John Romano at jromano@tampabay.com. Follow @romano_tbtimes