2022 in review: Nick Snyder

Nov 21, 2022 - 4:00 PM

<a href= — Photo by Robert Beck/MLB Photos via Getty Images

With the 2022 regular season almost over, it is that time for us to go back and take a look at the players who appeared for the Texas Rangers this season.

Today, we look at reliever Nick Snyder.

Nick Snyder was non-tendered on Friday afternoon by the Rangers. Pretty much every pre-arbitration player who gets non-tendered by the Rangers ends up re-signing on a minor league deal, so I suspect Snyder will still be with the organization come spring training. Still, the move caps what was an extremely disappointing season for Snyder.

Drafted by the Rangers in the 19th round of the 2017 draft out of Indian River State College in Fort Pierce, Florida, Snyder barely pitched his first two years as a pro, logging 19 innings in complex ball in 2017 and 2018 before spending the 2019 season in full season ball. 53 innings in the Sally League and 10 more in the AFL led to Tommy John surgery in 2020.

When Snyder returned to the mound in 2021, he quickly put himself on everyone’s radar, mowing down hitters in high-A and AA, getting to AAA for five appearances, and then getting a cup of coffee with the Rangers at the end of 2021.

Once spring training finally rolled around for 2022, Snyder was viewed as someone who had a good chance of being a contributor in the major leagues over the course of the season. Snyder didn’t make the Opening Day roster, but was called up early on, making two appearances before being sent back down to Round Rock. Snyder was called up again briefly in May though didn’t make an appearance before being sent back down.

And that ended up being the entirety of Snyder’s time in the majors in 2022. His final line for Texas was two appearances, one inning, seven batters faced, a hit, three walks and two runs allowed.

For Round Rock, Snyder put up a 4.97 ERA in 38 innings over 41 games while spending a month on the injured list. He struck out 51 of 165 batters faced in the PCL, but also walked 18 while allowing five home runs. He struggled with consistency for Round Rock — after allowing just one earned run in his first 15 outings for the Express, he allowed nine runs in back to back appearances, resulting in his landing on the injured list. A couple of rough outings aside, he seemed to be finishing the year on a strong note before allowing six runs in his final four outings.

Snyder throws hard and has a quality slider, and the hope had been that, having made his return from TJS in 2021, he would be in position to take the next step in 2022. Instead, a lack of consistent command resulted in him spending most of 2022 in the minors, and his now being off the 40 man roster.

Snyder can be a major league reliever if he can overcome his injury and command issues. Hopefully, he’ll get a chance to do that with the Rangers in 2023.

Previously: