Milwaukee Brewers Sign Forrest Snow to MiLB Deal with Spring Training Invite

The Milwaukee Brewers have been quietly putting together a rather compelling stable of minor league pitching depth this winter, and we can now reportedly add another name to the mix. Per Jim Goulart of Brewerfan.net, the Brewers have signed right-handed pitcher Forrest Snow (a name that will fit in perfectly in the state of Wisconsin) to a minor league deal with an invitation to Spring Training. Snow will turn 28 before the 2017 season begins and spent the last seven years in the Seattle Mariners organization after being selected in the 36th round of the 2010 MLB Draft. The Brewers have yet to announce the move, which is likely still pending the completion of a physical.

Despite his lowly draft status, Snow was at one time considered one of the more promising arms in the Mariners’ system. He pitched in the Arizona Fall League in 2011 and was in big league camp with the Mariners in 2012, but he never wound up breaking through to the Major League level and was suspended for 50 games in the beginning of 2014 for failing a second test for a drug of abuse. Snow has considerable experience in the upper minors, having spent the each of the last five seasons split between the AA and AAA levels.

For his career, the righty owns a 4.24 ERA across 204 minor league appearances (78 starts) covering 639.2 innings. He’s functioned as both a starter (making 20 starts as recently as 2015) and a reliever during his time in the pro ranks and has posted marks of 8.4 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9 along with a 1.280 WHIP. This past season, Snow worked to a 2.83 ERA in 28 appearances (3 starts) and 54.0 innings split between AA and AAA with 10.5 K/9 and 2.5 BB/9. He is currently pitching for Aguilas Cibaenas of the Dominican Winter League and has posted a 1.54 ERA with a 36:14 K/BB ratio and 1.03 WHIP in 35.0 innings across 7 starts.

According to this interview with Snow from the USS Mariner in 2014, he throws a tailing fastball that sits in the 91-93 MPH range, a ‘changeup’ that Brooks Baseball classifies as a splitter, a cutter, and a spike curveball. Pitch F/X registered Snow’s fastball as high as 97 MPH when working in a relief role. He is an intimidating physical presence on the mound standing at 6’6” and weighing in at 220 lbs and throws from a high three-quarters arm slot.

Snow’s versatility and ability to work both in the rotation and the bullpen make him a nice depth piece to have in AAA, where he figures to begin the 2017 season. KATOH projected him as one of the top 20 minor league free agent pitchers available this winter, joining recent Brewers’ signees Paolo Espino and Andrew Barbosa on that list. Perhaps more interesting is the fact that Snow’s signing means yet another pitcher added to the organization this winter that features a splitter as part of their arsenal. MiLB phase Rule 5 draftee Matt Ramsey, minor league signee Luke Barker, and waiver claims Blake Parker and Steve Geltz (who has since been outrighted and became a free agent) all throw the pitch and have been brought in by the Stearns regime this winter. Clearly something about the ‘rare’ offering is considered to be of value to the organization, dating back to last year’s claim of #2016BrewersAce Junior Guerra off waivers from the White Sox.

Statistics courtesy of Baseball-Reference