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Two big starting pitching free agents, Blake Snell and Jordan Montgomery, are still on the free agent market as the calendar turns to March.
It could present an opportunity for the Phillies to add another top starter to the rotation. The team, according to USA Today’s Bob Nightengale, has interest in Snell, but only on a “one-year or short-term contract.”
The Phillies also have interest in signing Montgomery on a similar type of deal, as previously reported by Todd Zolecki of MLB.com. Of the two starters, however, Snell is probably the more likely to take a shorter deal as opposed to waiting out for a lengthier term.
Snell has a qualifying offer attached. If the Phillies signed Snell to a short-term deal, they would have to surrender their second- and fifth-highest pick in next year’s draft along with one million in international bonus pool money. Adding Snell would also put the Phillies above the third luxury tax threshold for this year and move next year’s first-round pick back 10 spots.
Signing a short-term deal gives Snell the chance to re-test the market within the next couple years without a qualifying offer attached.
Montgomery does not have a qualifying offer attached, meaning the Phillies would only have to pay the financial and draft penalties associated with going above the third tier. Not having a qualifying offer attached, however, incentivizes Montgomery to hold out for a lengthier term.
Will he get it? Who knows if Montgomery has the market at this point. Nightengale also mentioned that executives believe Montgomery will end up with the Red Sox while the Angels will get Snell.
Snell is a two-time Cy Young winner who is coming off the best season of his career with the Padres. He went 14-9 with a 2.25 ERA over 180 innings in 2023. His two Cy Young Award seasons, however, were the only years of his career in which he has exceeded 130 innings pitched. Snell’s lack of durability over his career, along with his agent Scott Boras’ very high asking price of over $200 million, are two big reasons why he is still a free agent with Opening Day less than a month away.
He can slot into a rotation that already features Zack Wheeler, Aaron Nola, Ranger Suárez, Taijuan Walker and Cristopher Sánchez. A big factor in all of this however, is the Phillies’ belief in Sánchez taking another step forward this year. If the team believes Sánchez could build upon his excellent 2023 season, the Phillies could hold off a pursuit of Snell or Montgomery on a short-term deal.
Something has to give. Boras is likely waiting for a team to get desperate following an injury. It might take a little longer, but Snell and Montgomery are going to sign eventually. The Phillies are probably unlikely to get either pitcher, but their presence in the market shouldn’t be underestimated.
