BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!
Blake Snell’s alarm goes off at 8 a.m. inside his childhood home in Seattle. He reaches for a polo and grabs the closest pair of khaki pants he can find — the standard uniform for a marina dockhand.
It’s a random weekday in December 2011, several months after Snell was selected by the Rays in the first round of the Major League Baseball draft. He had just turned 19. Or it could’ve been sometime in January 2016, only a few months before Snell made his big-league debut.
The days in between those years all blend in for him. They consisted of 40-plus-hour weeks working at Elliott Bay Marina in Seattle during the offseason. He wasn’t doing it for the extra money — Snell signed for $684,000 after he was drafted No. 52 overall in 2011.
“I literally was, like, the bitch,” Snell says. “I did dock walks and cleaned all the shit off the docks and boats. I made sure all the boats were tied down and in order. That job sucked.”
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For five straight years, this was Snell’s routine. He worked through Tampa Bay’s farm system, and after each season, he returned to Elliott Bay Marina. The position only got harder, too, as the days went on. It wasn’t a pretty job description. His responsibilities included plenty of physical labor, in addition to his offseason baseball training, to help maintain the boats.
“He was like the trash boy,” his mother, Jane, says. “Picking up trash everywhere at that job — always working.”
Why not just spend those months from October to February taking a vacation? Why not relax and train during the offseason like most of his teammates?
“To wake up and have a reason to do something,” Snell explained. “Waking up and working out wasn’t doing it for me. I realized that when I got drafted. I had to have a reason to wake up, I needed a purpose. So I started that job. It’s always been about having a purpose.”
Eight years later, Snell is millions of dollars wealthier and among the most accomplished pitchers in baseball. However, he is in the midst of what he called one of the worst years of his career numbers-wise. Consecutive losses to the Yankees and Twins skyrocketed his ERA to a season-high and career-worst 5.01 a couple of weeks ago.
“Even if I finish with 70 innings of shutout baseball, it’ll still be the worst year,” he says. “But it’s crazy because I feel so good.”
During tough stretches this season, he remembers and reflects on lessons learned during his days as a dockhand at the marina.
“I stayed committed to it even though it sucked and I didn’t want to do it,” he says. “I showed up every day ready to work. That job taught me to do stuff I don’t want to do. You still have to commit and find a reason. It might not have benefited me at the time, but what I did realize is that when shit is tough, it doesn’t matter. You have to see through it. When I had to go walk the dock — three hours of sweeping shit off the dock — I made sure the person who came in after me was like, ‘Wow, I don’t want to work after Blake works.’
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“It’s helped me become who I am now and what I go through. I put myself into situations I don’t want to go through or might not like. And I succeed through it.”
“I showed up every day ready to work. That job taught me to do stuff I don’t want to do. You still have to commit and find a reason.” (Kim Klement / USA Today)
The notifications wouldn’t stop coming in.
Following the worst outing of his career on June 19 against the Yankees, Snell’s phone was like a nonstop alarm that kept going off again and again.
“You suck! The Yankees have your number!,” one Instagram comment read.
Another tweet: “What a Cy Young bum!”
The worst of them: “Kill yourself!”
He was chased out of the first inning after giving up six runs with four walks in the Bronx. The numbers were terrible and sent his season ERA skyrocketing. Snell has dealt with criticism his entire baseball career. He points out how most of these harsh comments are from fantasy baseball fans, and he understands that it comes with the territory in this profession.
But “Kill yourself”?
Snell wanted none of it. He proceeded to delete the Twitter app from his iPhone and he changed his Instagram profile from public to private.
“They’re following me, and all they want to do is talk shit,” Snell says. “I don’t get it. I’ll reply to a couple of them. I was going to save all the (screenshots) of what people sent me. I could have 100-plus pictures of people talking shit from this year. Death threats. ‘Kill yourself.’ All of that. But the thing is, I’ve never cared about someone’s opinion. I’ll listen to it, I’ll break it down, but that’s about it.”
His three starts between June 14-25 against the Angels, Yankees and Twins all had the same theme: forgettable. During that span, Snell combined for only seven innings pitched and sported a 20.57 ERA. He tallied seven strikeouts with nine walks, and opponents had a batting average of .486.
But with Snell, there is no forgetting. He’s like a wizard when it comes to remembering each start — he has the ability to replay each at-bat, each pitch in his head. He’s constantly wanting to get better and fix his mistakes. When he notices the tiniest mechanical issues, he’ll stand in front of a mirror and repeat his delivery for hours until it’s perfect. He says it’s all about making his fastball delivery look exactly the same as his secondary pitches.
During tough times this season, Snell has leaned on Rays mental-skills coach Justin Su’a, and he’s reminded of what got him to this point. The irony isn’t lost on Snell that all the hate during this stretch came just several months after he was named the AL Cy Young Award winner last fall when he finished with a 21-5 record and a 1.89 ERA, both team records.
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He was rewarded for his Cy Young season this spring with a club-record extension worth $50 million over five years.
“His growth, the progress he made, his accomplishments last year — we think it’s just the beginning for him,” Rays general manager Erik Neander said in March. “The opportunity to have him under team control and under contract with us for five years as opposed to four is something that we’re really excited about.”
So what’s changed for Snell this season?
“The thing is people don’t understand – my mentality never changed after signing the contract,” Snell says. “It’s always been the same. I wanted to be the best before I signed, and after I signed, I still want to be the best. The mentality has always been the same.
“I definitely feel like I put too much pressure on myself going into the season. I overthought a few things and put a lot of expectations on myself. … I just need to go out and play because I feel really good. That’s the crazy thing: I feel better than I did last year, but the numbers don’t necessarily show that.”
Snell has a point. He’s recording more swinging strikes and strikeouts, inducing less hard contact and walking fewer batters than he did during his historic 2018 season. The velocity on his fastball and the spin rate on his curveball are also both equal to last year’s numbers.
However, his use of pitches looks a lot different than it did last season and opponents could be game-planning better as they watch Snell take the mound more. There’s also that crazy toe injury Snell suffered earlier in the season.
“I don’t think I’m compensating anything from the toe,” he says. “The tail is still good on the curve and the fastball feels great. It’s bad luck — I run into it. It’s never bothered me. Honestly, I’d rather face (the Twins and Yankees) and suffer through that. It’s going to make me better in the end.”
He’s also worked with several different catchers — Mike Zunino, Michael Perez, Nick Ciuffo, Anthony Bemboom, Erik Kratz and Travis d’Arnaud — this year after throwing to mainly Wilson Ramos and Jesus Sucre (neither of whom are still with the Rays) last season.
“I know he’s going through this funk. I feel like that’s partially our fault too as his catchers,” d’Arnaud said following Snell’s rough start in the Bronx. “Knowing what Blake is capable of, he’s got electric stuff. It’s just one of those things where funk stuff happens and we’ve just got to keep working. He’s a straight-forward guy. But it’s our job to help him get out of this funk.
“We’ve got to get him back where he was. Once we do, things are going to be awesome.”
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Said teammate Matt Duffy: “You understand the best go through ups and downs. It’s not because something is wrong with him. We’re all human beings. Sometimes it’s a month of that, sometimes it’s a year of that in baseball. That doesn’t change who he is and what he means for our team. This game can humble you really quickly. Anytime we see his name on the lineup card, we’re still thinking, “It’s going to be a damn good day.’”
Snell gets a handshake from catcher Travis d’Arnaud at the end of an inning against the Texas Rangers on June 30. (Kim Klement / USA Today)
It’s 11:17 a.m. on a rare Monday off in Minneapolis when Snell steps into an all-black Chevrolet Suburban with tinted windows. He allows his lanky 6-foot-5 frame to get comfortable in the middle row.
He hums along with pop songs playing on the radio, nodding his head back and forth to the beat. Snell has a wide taste in music. His favorite artist right now is Post Malone; he appreciates the rapper’s creativity and calls him a game-changer in the industry.
A few minutes into the drive, Snell busts out his phone, pulls up his camera roll and excitedly reveals a secret he’s been wanting to share.
Snell was born and raised in Seattle, and the only MLB franchise he’s played for, knows and cares about is the Tampa Bay Rays. But for a majority of his baseball career, he’s struggled to find the true meaning of “home.”
Snell flashes a smile, swipes through photos, then informs The Athletic he recently bought an $800,000 property in the Shore Acres neighborhood in St. Petersburg, just north of Vinoy.
“It’s something I always searched for ever since I left my mom’s home when I got drafted,” he says. “You only have one home, like legit. You can make a bunch of other homes, but I grew up in my mom’s home. She decorated the house, made it the way it was. And it felt so comfortable because it’s all I knew.”
Through each stop in the minor leagues and even when he arrived in Tampa Bay, Snell has never felt truly comfortable.
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“When I grew up and went to all these places, it just never felt like home,” Snell says. “It always felt like someone else’s place. I never felt as comfortable as I wanted to feel. … That’s going to change.”
Over the past week, Snell flew in both his father, David, and his mother — his parents are divorced but amicable — to help him make his new house feel like home. He officially purchased the house last Friday, and his family helped him move in this past weekend.
“Everything that is going in the home, it’s because of them,” Blake says.
They spent the weekend shopping around for new living room furniture, kitchen appliances and a matching washer and dryer. Last month during the Minnesota series, Blake purchased 10 large paintings at a canvas store located inside Mall of America. He’s doing everything he can, along with the help of his parents, to make his new crib feel like home.
“It’s going to take a lot of work, but we’re going to do whatever he needs to be comfortable here,” Jane said Saturday after her son’s start against the Yankees, a 4-3 Rays win. “It’s going to be a fantastic home for Blake.”
Snell shops for new threads at the Lululemon in Mall of America outside of Minneapolis. (Josh Tolentino / The Athletic)
How exactly does a 26-year-old handle a bank account that feels at times like it has endless zeros attached to it?
Snell has a much thicker wallet now thanks to his recent contract extension, but he strives to be responsible with his money. With the help of an accountant — one of his close friends — he has around $10 million stowed away in different investments. While shopping around recently for his new home with his younger brother, David, they compared prices around the area and noted how expensive properties on the water were. His new 3,000-square-foot home is about one-third of the price of the other properties around the neighborhood.
“I want to be modest and aware of what I’m spending,” Snell says. “I had to work for everything I had growing up. I’m not about to just give it away. I’m not about to just live lavishly without any responsibility.”
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Snell is smart with his money, but he still rewards himself every now and then. He has most personally invested in video games and sneakers. He owns nearly 400 pairs of shoes, mostly Nikes and Air Jordans, and he has an unworldly passion for video games. Despite never owning his own system as a kid in Seattle, Snell loved video games. He often went over to friends’ houses after school, and he’d be on the sticks for days playing several different shooter-based games.
“I’ve done it my whole life,” Snell says. “I was one of the best ‘Halo’ players, one of the best ‘Call of Duty’ players. I was so good. When I was 16, I played a whole summer of ‘Halo’ with my friend. I was one of the best, like, in the world.”
Snell loves playing ”Fortnite,” too, and owns his own Twitch channel, “classiclyfamous,” on which he streams live regularly throughout the season. His weapon of choice in “Fortnite” is the sniper. He loves the accuracy and precision it takes to fire the weapon, much like when he unleashes his pitches from the mound to home plate.
He enjoys interacting with different fans and subscribers on Twitch, too. He’ll answer questions — baseball related or not — and crack jokes throughout the streams. He has built a growing online community through video games, and he makes it a point to thank each and every subscriber during the stream. There’s also a pretty good chance Snell will rack up victories on the survival, battle-royale game. His personal high is 17 kills in a solo match.
His involvement in the gaming world extends beyond just playing them himself. Earlier this month, Snell donated to St. Joseph’s Children’s Hospital of Tampa $20,000 worth of customized “Zilla” XBOX 360 and PS4 systems with 30-plus preloaded games on each console. He says he did it because of his childhood days without video games, but he also has a deeper purpose.
After racking up 12 Ks yesterday, @snellzilla4 spent his day donating gaming consoles to St. Joseph’s Children’s Hospital. #BiggerThanBaseball pic.twitter.com/PXNJKh3sNR
— MLB (@MLB) July 1, 2019
“Kids usually get toys and dolls at hospitals,” Snell says. “I feel bad for kids who don’t get to experience the fun of video games and getting away. I feel video games help me get away from a lot of things. So I thought, ‘How awesome would it be for kids to get away from the pain they feel just by playing those video games?’”
Snell believes he’s helped gamers become baseball fans and baseball fans become supporters of his stream. But he’s made it clear that he wants to keep the two separate: Baseball is work, and video games are his hobby. But it was inevitable that his stream would create new bonds. He recalls several instances where his stream has allowed subscribers to meet one another offline, some even at Rays games, and continue to foster friendships. It’s only going to get better with his new house, too.
He plans on transforming one of the four bedrooms in his new house into a fully loaded game room, equipped with a new PC system, two sets of LED lights, full soundboards and more.
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“I encourage fans to subscribe to the channel because it gives us an opportunity to escape from everyday life,” Snell says. “I love playing with subscribers and try to make it as fun and interactive as possible.”
Snell scopes out different sneakers at Piff Minneapolis, a streetwear boutique. He bought the Air Jordan Doernbecher 1’s (the blue/yellow pair in the middle row) in his size 13. (Josh Tolentino / The Athletic)
No matter what happens for the rest of his career, Snell understands he now carries the title of Cy Young Award winner everywhere he goes. And deservedly so, he is well respected around the league, particularly following his historic 2018 season.
As Snell puts it, “real recognizes real.”
“I know him and how much of a stud he is,” Astros All-Star infielder Alex Bregman said recently. “When he uses his changeup, he’s the most unhittable guy in the game. … He’s a great dude. He just wants it. He wants to be the best, and he wants that every time he takes the hill. That’s why he is one of the best.”
Red Sox outfielder Mookie Betts, the 2018 AL MVP, offers a unique perspective on watching Snell up close, since both players were drafted in 2011 and rose through their respective farm systems together.
“I’ve been facing him for a long time,” Betts says. “It’s been kind of crazy to see where he started and where he is now. He’s a good friend of mine, and I want all the success in the world for him. He’s had a ton of it. It’s just one of those things where it’s just a pleasure to sit back and watch one of your homies do so well.”
Snell has rebounded from that forgettable run in June with back-to-back solid starts against the Rangers and Yankees. He combined for 17 strikeouts, two walks and three runs allowed over 11 innings. It’s an encouraging sign for both Snell and the Rays at the All-Star break.
“I think it’s going to play a big part in us and the momentum that we’ll build off it, especially against the Yankees,” Snell said following Saturday’s win. “They’ve been playing really good baseball and finding ways to win. We’ve been scuffling a little bit. So for us to (beat them), it’s huge. It’s going to help us a lot.”
On Monday, the first day official day of the break, Snell wandered around St. Petersburg in his frozen-matte-grey Maybach and made several stops around town. He’s disappointed he didn’t make this year’s Midsummer Classic, but he’s making full use of the time off. He picked up furniture from Sam’s Club, bought a 65-inch Samsung QLED TV from Best Buy, ate a half-chicken, half-carnitas burrito bowl from Chipotle and drove back and forth between his condo in Treasure Island and his new home in Shore Acres.
Not once was he stopped for a photo or autograph. Snell maintains a low-key profile. He’s mostly quiet around the clubhouse and enjoys flashing his funny personality on his Twitch stream.
Anywhere else? Snell couldn’t care less.
Snell fills up the tank in his frozen-matte-grey Maybach at a gas station near his new house in St. Petersburg. (Josh Tolentino / The Athletic)
Locals still might not recognize the Rays ace, but he doesn’t think twice about it. He just wants Rays fans to know a few things:
“I know I’ll be here for the next four-plus years,” Snell says. “So I want to be at a place that’s going to be the most comfortable, allow me to perform at the highest level that I want to. I’ll be here in the offseason more than I ever have been now that I have a place to stay.”
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With sunset looming on Monday evening, Snell pulls his Maybach to a stop in the driveway in front of his new pad in St. Petersburg. His to-do list before the second half of the season arrives is lengthy. The walls still need to be painted and a new dock needs to be built. He picks up some remaining items scattered around the property that were left by the previous owner. After tidying up a little bit more, he opens a sliding door that leads to a massive backyard with a swimming pool that sits right off the Bayou Grande.
Snell walks out to the edge of the yard and stands over the water. He squints and looks into the distance, then pauses and takes a deep breath.
“I love it here. I’m going to give this team my all. I’m finally home.”
— The Athletic’s Chad Jennings and Nick Groke contributed to this story.
(Top photo of Snell sitting inside Piff Minneapolis: Josh Tolentino / The Athletic)
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