Snell is putting significant importance on his remaining 2016 starts beginning with Thursday's tilt against the Orioles, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports. "I only have three starts left and they are all really important to me," he said. "The growth I can gain from three outings is huge, so it's definitely important. I think it's something I need to do, so then in the offseason it allows me to be that much more focused, have more of a positive offseason. I definitely need to finish strong."
The rookie has experienced a recent slide, lasting just 2.2 innings against the Yankees his last time out and no more than 3.2 innings in two other starts over his last four trips to the mound. He also was chased after just 1.2 innings against the Blue Jays on Aug. 10, the outing that seemed to initiate the rough patch he still largely finds himself in. Snell still sports a solid 3.62 ERA and 82 whiffs over his 77 innings, while only surrendering five homers over that span. However, he also has posted an unsightly 1.64 WHIP and issued multiple walks in all but two of his starts. Most of those numbers fall in line with his body of work over his five-plus minor league seasons with the exception of the control problems, with the aforementioned WHIP figure being his highest since High-A ball in 2014. Snell is scheduled to face the Yankees and White Sox in his final two starts after Thursday's matchup against the Orioles.