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Mets: Will Noah Syndergaard be with the team past 2021?

By James Richards |
NEW YORK, NY - JUNE 15: Pitcher Noah Syndergaard #34 of the New York Mets runs back out to the mound to pitch the ninth inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates during a game at Citi Field on June 15, 2016 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City. The Mets defeated the Pirates 11-2. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - JUNE 15: Pitcher Noah Syndergaard #34 of the New York Mets runs back out to the mound to pitch the ninth inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates during a game at Citi Field on June 15, 2016 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City. The Mets defeated the Pirates 11-2. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images)
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PORT ST. LUCIE, FL – MARCH 08: Noah Syndergaard #34 of the New York Mets in action against the Houston Astros during a spring training baseball game at Clover Park on March 8, 2020 in Port St. Lucie, Florida. The Mets defeated the Astros 3-1. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images)
PORT ST. LUCIE, FL – MARCH 08: Noah Syndergaard #34 of the New York Mets in action against the Houston Astros during a spring training baseball game at Clover Park on March 8, 2020 in Port St. Lucie, Florida. The Mets defeated the Astros 3-1. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images) /

With Noah Syndergaard currently set to hit free agency following the 2021 season, there are questions whether or not he will remain in New York past then.

Prior to the 2013 season, the New York Mets sent the reigning Cy Young Award winner RA Dickey to the Toronto Blue Jays in a blockbuster deal that landed them on of the top prospect in baseball, Noah Syndergaard.

After a few more years in the minors, Syndergaard was called up to the big leagues in the 2015 season and made an instant impact for the club, and since his big league debut, Noah has been one of the centerpieces of New York’s Starting Rotation and earn himself an All-Star selection in 2016.

Since his call up, Syndergaard has pitched in a grand total of 119 games for the New York Mets, starting 118 of them, compiling a win/loss record of 47-30, totaling 716.0 innings, and logging a 3.31 ERA while striking out 775 batters.

Noah has admittedly missed some time with injuries, most notably a large part of the 2017 season due to a bicep injury, and the entirety of the 2020 season due to Tommy John Surgery.

Despite these injuries, Syndergaard has been a healthy and effective pitcher the vast majority of his tenure with the Mets and established himself as one of the hardest throwers in the league with “once in a generation” talent.

When he returns to the team in 2021, it will be in the final year of his original contract, and as great of a player as he has been for the team, there is some doubt as to whether or not Syndergaard will remain with the club past next year.

Why? Here’s why.

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – SEPTEMBER 29: Noah Syndergaard #34 of the New York Mets in action against the Atlanta Braves at Citi Field on September 29, 2019 in New York City. New York Mets defeated the Atlanta Braves 7-6. (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – SEPTEMBER 29: Noah Syndergaard #34 of the New York Mets in action against the Atlanta Braves at Citi Field on September 29, 2019 in New York City. New York Mets defeated the Atlanta Braves 7-6. (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images) /

The Cost of a New Contract

As previously stated, Noah has always been an effective pitcher when he was healthy and is one of the leagues hardest throwers. Talent like that is rare to find, and many teams are willing to pay top dollar for it.

In the past few years, we have seen top tier pitchers like Max Scherzer, Clayton Kershaw, and Zack Greinke sign massive 6-7 year deals each worth over $200 million.

While the Mets showed they are willing to spend money when they signed Jacob deGrom to a 5 year $145 Million extension, deGrom was coming off winning the Cy Young Award and there’s no guarantee they will offer that much to a player one year removed from TJ Surgery.

Additionally, as we saw this past offseason, some teams are even willing to overpay for good pitching, and I of course am referring to the Phillies signing former Mets starter Zack Wheeler as soon as he first hit free agency.

Last December, the Phillies signed Wheeler to a five-year, $118 million contract, which was an offer much higher than many believed Wheeler was worth. While Wheeler was a fine pitcher, he missed two whole seasons recovering from Tommy John Surgery while with the Mets and had some very inconsistent performances during his time in New York.

Of the two, Syndergaard is considered to be the better starting pitcher, and if Wheeler can command that size of a contract on the open market, the Mets’ owners will have to fork up a lot of cash in order to keep Noah in orange and blue.

NEW YORK, NY – SEPTEMBER 08: Noah Syndergaard #34 of the New York Mets in action against the Philadelphia Phillies during a game at Citi Field on September 8, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY – SEPTEMBER 08: Noah Syndergaard #34 of the New York Mets in action against the Philadelphia Phillies during a game at Citi Field on September 8, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images) /

Conflicts with Current/Potential Deals

While Syndergaard may well deserve a big payday, the Mets do have a few conflicts that may come into play if they are interested in resigning him. They currently have Jacob deGrom and Robinson Cano under contracts for big money, and the team may be hesitant to blow out the budget on just a few players, as they have done in the past.

Beyond that, fellow Met Michael Conforto is also set to be a free agent following the 2021 season, and it may be difficult to bring both men back on large deals, leaving New York a difficult decision to make.

Additionally, if the team decides to break the bank and sign a few blue-chip free agents this off-season, such as Marcus Stroman, JT Realmuto, or James Paxton, the money they spend this year could come into play with resigning Syndergaard next offseason.

The Mets could try to solve that issue this year and sign Noah to an extension following this season as they did with deGrom. However, seeing as they are about to go through an ownership change and that Syndergaard is coming off an injury, that may be more of a longshot.

The bottom line is, Syndergaard is a talented player and an effective pitcher when healthy. He can be a difference-maker for any club, and the big this it will come down to for the Mets to hold onto him is the cost.

Noah will likely be valued very highly by other teams on the open market, and given the Mets’ history of spending big money to resign players, they may be hesitant to do so with Syndergaard this time around.

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Hopefully, if Steve Cohen is able to buy the team and go on a spending spree this year things will change, but for now, the clock for the Mets to extend Syndergaard is ticking, and well have our answer by the end of next year.

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