Why Dodgers’ Blake Snell isn’t disappointed with the delayed start to the season

PHOENIX –– In Game 1 of last year’s National League Championship Series, Blake Snell made the start of his life.

Eight innings. No running. One hit. Ten strikeouts. Total, total and pure domination of the Brewers.

In the days that followed, however, he knew something was wrong.

“After that start,” Snell recalled Sunday, “it was like, ‘Holy s….’”

As it turns out, the shoulder injury that dogged Snell for much of his rookie season with the Dodgers didn’t end when he returned from the injured list in early August. After the NLCS masterclass last October, his shoulder pain returned – and despite Snell making three more World Series appearances, it persisted through most of the winter.

That is why Snell is now behind schedule in the run-up to the new season.

Entering spring training, he acknowledged that his progress would be slowed after receiving physical therapy on his shoulder for most of the winter.

And this week, manager Dave Roberts confirmed the inevitable, acknowledging that Snell’s chances of being ready for Opening Day are “probably zero” as he’s still waiting to even throw off a mound.

In the past, this may have been a bigger frustration for the 33-year-old southpaw. Despite being a two-time Cy Young Award winner with what is widely considered some of the best raw stuff in the sport, questions about workload and durability have long dogged him throughout his 10-season career.

But when asked about his status on Sunday, Snell sounded optimistic rather than deflated by his delayed start to the season.

“I feel really good,” he told The California Post. “The whole offseason was tough. But finally I’m where I want to be. So now it’s building up and getting ready for the season. … Trust my arm, make sure everything is in sync.”

Last spring, Snell noted, he pushed himself too hard to be ready for the start of his first Dodgers season. He started his career a few weeks earlier, after signing for $182 million in the offseason. He was trying to overcome shoulder pain that first appeared after a practice appearance during the team’s season-opening trip to Japan. Although he started the Dodgers’ home opener, Snell ended up on the injured list after his next appearance against the Braves a week later, missing the next four months with what the team described as shoulder inflammation.

“Last spring I was so excited to pitch, but I ended up in a bad spot because I was getting ready too quickly,” Snell said. “What I should have done – once we went to Japan, that’s when I started feeling the shoulder – I should have stopped. But I wanted to pitch Opening Day. And then I wanted to pitch against the Braves. And then I was like, ‘Ah.’ I could barely get my shoulder up to throw after that. So it took a while for things to get back to normal. … And in the postseason I felt it again.”

What Snell is proud of in retrospect was his ability to “fight through” the playoffs.

He turned in gems in the wild-card round (seven innings, two runs) and Division Series (six scoreless innings), even before his near-complete run in the NLCS. And while he struggled in his two World Series starts, his 1⅓ scoreless innings of relief in Game 7 allowed the Dodgers to reach Yoshinobu Yamamoto in extra innings.

“Pitching in the postseason is the best feeling in the world,” he said. “There’s no better feeling than pitching (in that atmosphere), the crowd, the excitement, all the emotions that come with every start. It’s an adrenaline rush, man. So I want to pitch in more meaningful games.”

“But,” he added, “I have to do everything right to get there.”

That’s why Snell is taking things easier this time around – hoping to avoid the extended absence he endured last year.

He is still only 30 yards in the catch game, but has seen an uptick in his speed in recent days. The Dodgers are hopeful he can take a mound before the end of camp, after which they can set a firmer target date for his return to the rotation.

“Earlier is better,” he said, noting that his ultimate goal is to star in the playoffs again this fall. “But I’m taking my time and trusting them. … I just have to take it easy, take the course.”