San Diego Padres starting pitcher Blake Snell took his fifth loss of the season Friday night, falling to the Philadelphia Phillies. Snell allowed three runs on two hits and two walks in five innings, striking out nine batters along the way. This breaks a streak of three consecutive starts without giving up more than two earned runs. Snell has enjoyed quite a strong August, with a 1.59 ERA, 1.29 WHIP, and 25 strikeouts in 17 innings. Fantasy managers have to have faith that Snell doesn't revert to the form that saw him post a 5.44 ERA in the first four months of the year.

2021 hasn't been kind to former AL Cy Young winner Blake Snell. The Padres starter entered the month of August with a 5.44 ERA and a 4-4 record on the year. However, he's starting to show some signs of a turnaround. Over his first three starts of August, Snell has gone 2-0 with a 1.59 ERA, striking out 25 batters over 17 innings. Two of his outings were against one of the league's worst hitting teams, the Arizona Diamondbacks, but the third was against a stellar Oakland Athletics lineup. Snell has some scary underlying metrics, including a 13.8% walk rate that ranks in the bottom 6% of the league and a 10.8% barrel rate that ranks in the bottom 10% of the league. He'll need to improve upon those metrics in order to truly turn things around, but at least the first steps toward a turnaround have been taken. Snell's next start will be on Friday against the Philadelphia Phillies.

San Diego Padres starter Blake Snell shut out the Arizona Diamondbacks for seven innings Sunday, collecting a season-high 13 strikeouts. Easily his best start of 2021, the left-hander induced 25 whiffs while permitting just two hits and three walks. The outing marked Snell's second consecutive positive start and the fourth time he completed six-plus innings. The 28-year-old has endured a challenging campaign, but Sunday's gem drops his ERA to 4.86 to accompany a 1.56 WHIP and 29 percent strikeout rate. He'll face the D-Backs again next Friday on the road and one more quality performance could put him back in the fantasy circle of trust as an SP3/4.

San Diego Padres starter Blake Snell bounced back with five innings of one-run ball Tuesday against the Oakland Athletics, earning his fifth win. After getting pummeled by the A's for seven earned runs last week, Snell skirted around six hits and three walks to fan six over 105 pitches. While far from efficient, the outing was relatively pain-free for the left-hander aside from being victimized by outfielder Starling Marte for three hits including a homer. Through 89 frames, Snell still owns a poor 5.24 ERA and 1.62 WHIP while maintaining a 27 percent strikeout rate. With a 14 percent walk rate, the 28-year-old has failed going deep into games, with just three quality starts in 20 starts. He'll square off against the Miami Marlins at home next week and is worth the fantasy gamble for teams comfortable under any innings restrictions.

San Diego Padres starter Blake Snell was tagged for seven earned runs in four innings Wednesday against the Oakland Athletics. The horrific side of the volatile Snell showed up as he served seven hits and four walks over 86 laborious pitches with a single strikeout. His doom was sealed before the Friars saw a pitch as A's third baseman Matt Chapman crushed a three-run job in a nightmare first inning. After 84 frames, Snell's lost season continues in the form of a 5.44 ERA and 1.61 WHIP. Despite a 29 percent strikeout rate, the left-hander has devolved into a fantasy spot starter outside of shallow formats. He'll rematch the A's next Tuesday at the Oakland Coliseum.