Ian Snell

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**Ian Snell**

Pittsburgh Pirates — No. 45
Starting Pitcher
Born: October 30, 1981 (1981-10-30) (age 26)
Bats: Right	Throws: Right
Major League Baseball debut
August 20, 2004 for the Pittsburgh Pirates
Selected MLB statistics (through 2007)
Win-Loss	24-26
Earned Run Average	4.40
Strikeouts	389
Teams
Pittsburgh Pirates (2004-present)

Ian Dante Snell (born October 30, 1981 in Dover, Delaware) is a pitcher in Major League Baseball who currently plays for the Pittsburgh Pirates. He throws and bats right-handed. From 2001-2003, he went by the name Ian Oquendo, which is the last name of his wife. However, Snell was his surname at birth.^[1] He throws a mid-90's fastball, along with a curveball, slider and changeup.

1 High School
2 Playing Career
- 2.1 Minor Leagues
- 2.2 Major league
3 External links
4 References

[edit] High School

Ian Snell is a 2000 graduate of Caesar Rodney High School in Camden, Delaware. There he was a three-sport athlete, playing football, baseball and basketball.

[edit] Playing Career

[edit] Minor Leagues

Snell made his professional debut with the rookie league Gulf Coast Pirates in 2000, after being selected by the Pirates in the 26th round of the June amateur draft. He made his debut on July 17, pitching 1.2 innings of scoreless relief against the GCL Expos.

In 2001, Snell split the season between the GCL Pirates and the single-A Williamsport Crosscutters.

Snell played his 2002 season with the South Atlantic League Champion Hickory, a Single-A club. There he ranked fourth among league pitchers in strikeouts and seventh in ERA.

In 2003, when Snell went 14-4 with a 3.00 ERA and 145 strikeouts in 26 minor league starts, split between Single-A Lynchburg and AA Altoona, he was named the Pirates organizational Pitcher-of-the-Year.

Snell spent the majority of his 2004 season with Altoona. He set a single-season Curve record and finished second in the league with 142 strikeouts. 2004 also saw the start of Snell's Major League career.

He was called up to the Pirates, making his major-league debut on August 20 against St. Louis, surrendering one hit (a solo home run to John Mabry), three walks and two strikeouts in 2.0 innings of work. He was sent back down to Altoona before being called up a second time on September 21, after Altoona's season ended.

In 2005, Snell split the season between the Triple-A Indianapolis Indians, going 11-3 with a 3.70 ERA, and the Pirates. While with the Indians, he pitched a no-hitter on May 15 against the Norfolk Tides. He was named the International League pitcher of the week twice, for the weeks ending May 1 and May 15. He had two stints with the Pirates, from June 26-August 16 and again from September 12 to the end of the season.

[edit] Major league

With the Pirates, he appeared in 15 games, including 5 starts. His first win came September 19, against Roger Clemens and the Houston Astros. In this game, he allowed only three singles in eight innings of work.^[2] It would be his only win in 2005, though, as he finished the season 1-2 with a 5.14 ERA in over 42 innings.

In 2006, Snell won 14 games, the most for Pittsburgh in several seasons, while losing 11 and leading the team in strikeouts.

On January 28, 2007, the Delaware Sportswriters and Broadcasters Association honored Snell as the "John J. Brady Athlete of the Year", an award given annually to the best athlete from Delaware.^[3]

On March 16, 2008, Snell agreed to a contract extension with the Pirates worth at least $8 million over three years. Additionally, the Pirates have options on Snell for the 2011 and 2012 seasons.^[4]