Blake Snell's number retired in ceremony Monday

Blake Snell was honored Monday
at SW - SC basketball game

Photos by Wayne Pridemore

At Monday's Shorewood - Shorecrest basketball game a ceremony was held to honor Blake Snell.

Blake is a 2011 Shorewood graduate who was a star pitcher for the Thunderbirds' baseball team. The 6 foot 4 inch southpaw currently pitches in major league baseball for the Tampa Bay Rays.

Wyatt Tonkin and Vicki Gorman conduct the ceremony
for Blake Snell

Wyatt Tonkin, Shorewood's baseball coach, and Shorewood athletic director Vicki Gorman conducted the retirement ceremony for Blake Snell's baseball number four. The number will never be used by any future Shorewood player.

A banner was presented which honors Snell. It will hang on Shorewood's outfield fence with other honored former players.

The banner will hang in the outfield at games

In Tampa Bay, Snell was referred to as an "electric ray" in an ESPN feature story by Thomas Neuman.

In a few months last year, Snell rose from Class A to Triple-A. He posted a combined 15-4 record with a 1.41 ERA and 163 strikeouts in 134 innings and was named 2015 minor league player of the year by Baseball America and USA Today.

Snell started as a T-Bird

He made his first major league start against the Yankees in Yankee stadium. His second start was against the Mariners.

Beginning with the 2016 season, he is a starting pitcher for the Tampa Bay Rays.