It isn’t his elbow.
That’s been the company line when it comes to Noah Syndergaard’s recent struggles. Despite two lackluster outings sandwiched around an MRI exam given after he felt discomfort in the elbow (it revealed what the team has termed as a minor bone spur), everyone around the Mets insists Syndergaard is healthy.
General manager Sandy Alderson said the bone spur is so small, it won’t require surgery. Syndergaard initially denied he even had a bone spur and said it had no bearing on his recent problems, describing it as “insignificant.” Manager Terry Collins is confident there isn’t a question of health.
“If the elbow had any issues, he wouldn’t be throwing 100 [mph],” Collins said before the Mets’ 4-3 victory over the Cubs on Saturday night at Citi Field. “It’s the same old stuff: You got to locate your pitches. Two starts ago, everything was in the middle of the plate. He threw a fastball, even though it was 98 [mph], it was right in the zone. Instead of getting it in on the inner half or the outer half, he was leaving balls primarily on the white part of the plate in hitting areas.
“He’s got to go back and get himself back to the corners. Don’t be afraid to pitch inside a little bit more.”
In his most recent start, when he lasted just three innings against the Nationals, Syndergaard’s electric slider frequently was squared up. It was down a few miles per hour, and it was flat. But Syndergaard, who will face the Cubs’ Jon Lester on Sunday to close out the four-game series, hasn’t shown any hesitancy to go to the pitch. He just hasn’t executed it.
“He lost a feel for the depth in the slider,” Collins said. “He’s got to get that back.”
Whatever the reasons for the poor results, they are concerning. In his past two starts, spanning nine innings, Syndergaard has given up 15 hits, eight earned runs, walked three and struck out nine. His ERA has risen more than half a run, from 1.91 to 2.49.
He blew a 4-0 lead against the Nationals and a pair of one-run leads against the Royals. Before those starts, Syndergaard had given up three earned runs or more twice in 14 previous outings.
“Unfortunately, my last start didn’t go as planned. That’s baseball, you’re going to have days like that,” Syndergaard said. “It’s what separates the good players from the great players, how they are able to bounce back from adversity.
“If you break it down, it was really one bad inning where I let things speed up on me. That’s not characteristic of me. That’s something I learned in [Triple-A] Las Vegas and last year. I won’t let it happen again.”
Before the game, the Mets sent down rookie reliever Seth Lugo, feeling they didn’t need an extra arm any more, because they were confident Syndergaard and Steven Matz can go deep into games despite the bone spurs they are dealing with. To Syndergaard, it’s a non-issue.
“My arm felt good, I felt strong. It was the best velocity I had all year,” Syndergaard said, referring to the Nationals start. “I was trying to do too much. I was trying to force things.”
