Mets RHP Noah Syndergaard to revamp training strategy

Mets ace Noah Syndergaard was candid in recent comments about the effects his training strategy has had on his season.

Injuries have been a sizable portion of the reason for the Mets’ disappointing season. Perhaps none was more severe than when Noah Syndergaard tore his lat muscle in late April against Washington. Syndergaard just recently began throwing again and it’s unknown when he will return to the mound.

In an article in the New York Times, Syndergaard — who added 17 pounds of muscle during the offseason — acknowledged that he is rethinking his training program. Some highlights from Syndergaard include the admission he was too bulky, that he would continue to lift weights while “being smart about it,” and he also mentioned how his posture has contributed to battling back tightness.

You can read the whole article with more quotes from Syndergaard here.

There were some who saw this coming, even though Syndergaard initially rejected the idea of his revamped training regimen being the root cause of his lat injury. Syndergaard has started just five games this season and pitched to a 3.29 ERA with 32 strikeouts in 27.1 innings.

Syndergaard has come full circle and it’s great to hear that he’s working on getting his body in better shape as a baseball player and not a super athlete with less coordination. Syndergaard’s fastball was hard enough before this year (averaged 98.0 in 2016 according to Fangraphs), and his overall repertoire is good enough to be a front-line starter on the Mets or any team in the league.

He will turn 25 in August and with what he’s done so far, the sky could be the limit. This year could be chalked up to a humbling learning experience for the man known as Thor.

Syndergaard’s 2017 campaign was a brief snapshot, but he was on the road to dominance before everything fell apart in Washington. Syndergaard had allowed just two walks (one intentional) and no home runs.

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At this point, it has to be discussed whether it may be more beneficial to let Syndergaard get ready for next year. He obviously knows he has some adjustments to make, and the rest of this season could be used as a sort of reset button. What heightens that even further is the Mets most likely selling at the trade deadline.