Mets Minors: Noah Syndergaard dominates while tossing shutout in Las Vegas

On Monday night, Noah Syndergaard turned in what was perhaps his most dominant start as a professional, shutting out Albuquerque in a seven inning complete game for the 51s.

The game was only seven innings long due to the fact that it was the first game of a doubleheader.

In his seven innings of work, Syndergaard allowed two hits and walked none while striking out nine, lowering his ERA for the season to 2.45.

Syndergaard, who retired 17 straight batters at one point, threw 83 pitches, 62 of which went for strikes.

Thoughts:

More important than the results for Syndergaard on Monday night was the way he got there, mixing in all of his pitches, working fast, and locating perfectly. It wasn’t just dominance, it was Syndergaard turning into a pitcher who was simply untouchable.

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There were games last season when Syndergaard worked on his secondary stuff and did well, but there was nothing like Monday – when he was comfortable doubling up on his curve and using it as an out-pitch at times. While using the curve as his primary secondary weapon, Syndergaard also mixed in his changeup in order to keep Albuquerque off balance even more.

For the majority of the night, opposing hitters were simply helpless against Syndergaard, either flailing wildly or standing frozen as fastballs dotted the corners or curves dropped in.

Monday night’s start was even more impressive since it was Syndergaard’s first start since dealing with an illness so severe that he needed intravenous fluids. Syndergaard also tussled with a fan on Twitter on Thursday after the fan questioned Syndergaard’s toughness.

I was of the belief that Syndergaard was ready for the bigs after last season. After Monday’s start, it appears that Syndergaard has officially transitioned from thrower to pitcher, and the Mets should make room for him in the big league rotation sooner rather than later.