The Phillies hammered out their second recent nine-figure pitching investment this morning. Philadelphias three-year, $126MM with follows their $172MM guarantee over seven seasons to retain in free agency. Theres been chatter about the po sibility of adding the defending NL Cy Young winner to form an elite trio, but that has always seemed like a stretch even for a franchise that spends as aggre sively on star talent as the Phillies do. USA Todays Bob Nightengale wrote that the Phils had interest in Snell if he takes a short-term contract. However, reported differently this afternoon. According to Gelb, the Phillies have not seriously discu sed a pursuit of Snell, regardle s of the contract length required. Snell declined a qualifying offer from the Padres at the beginning of the offseason. Gelb suggests the Phils werent interested in signing a player who rejected a QO, which would require them to forfeit their second and fifth picks in the 2024 draft and $1MM in bonus pool space for international amateurs. Philadelphia did relinquish their right to a compensatory pick by re-signing Nola, though that would have been only one draft choice that fell Cal Quantrill Jersey after the fourth round. (Snell is the only of the seven players who declined the QO who remains unsigned.) Even independent of the draft compensation, the Phillies havent seemed a great fit for Snell since they retained Nola. Philadelphia has $246MM in player commitments for the upcoming season, as calculated by . Thats a little north of last years $243MM franchise-record Opening Day mark. The Phils have nearly $262MM in competitive balance tax commitments. Theyre going to exceed the CBT for a third consecutive season, leading to higher penalties as a three-time payor. Philadelphia is already set to pay roughly $13MM in luxury taxes. Further additions either during the offseason or around the deadline will add to that mark. The Phils would pay a 62% tax on their approximate next $15MM in spending. Thatd be followed by a 95% charge on the following $20MM and a 110% tax on any money thereafter. A short-term contract for Snell would a suredly come with a lofty average salary, heightening the CBT commitments. A $35MM annual value, as a hypothetical, would add around $28MM to Philadelphias tax bill on top of the money going to Snell. It would also vault the Phils past the $277MM line that marks the third tier of CBT penalization, pushing their top pick in the 2025 draft back 10 spots in the proce s. A longer-term commitment could soften the CBT hit but would add another extended pitching investment to the Nola, Wheeler and contracts which all run through 2026 or later. Every team would benefit from installing Snell into their rotation in the short term. The Phillies have a strong starting five already, though. Wheeler, Nola, , Walker and is a good group. Philadelphia took a flier on as a long man/sixth starter and added and as further rotation depth. Prospects and are higher ceiling options who could make their respective big league debuts in 2024. is likely to mi s all of this season recovering from Tommy John surgery, yet he should be a factor in the 25 starting staff. Juan Mejia Jersey