Ed Coleman: Smarter, Settled Syndergaard Hoping To Pitch In For Mets
By Ed Coleman
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It wasn't that Noah Syndergaard had a bad year in 2014. It's just that he expected to be wearing a big-league uniform with "Mets" emblazoned across the front at some point last year. That never happened. It was a big disappointment.
And Syndergaard knows he has no one but himself to blame.
Syndergaard met the media on Wednesday and expounded on several issues. For a pitcher whom manager Terry Collins said had a "hook from hell," he fell too much in love with his exceptional fastball, and that was the beginning of his downfall.
When mid-season arrived, and Syndergaard still hadn't been called up like Matt Harvey and Zack Wheeler in previous years, he started to get anxious and panicked.
Syndergaard realized he was his own worst enemy last season, and wants to adhere to the the C's this time around.
He is a smarter, wiser pitcher, and talked about his goal this spring in Florida.
Syndergaard still has work to do and several things to work on, but he is trying to stay within himself, take it day-by-day, and let the game come to him, so to speak.
The young Texan has great secondary stuff -- an hellacious curve ball and a steadily improving changeup -- and flashed both in an impressive bullpen on Tuesday.
The progress on the changeup can be attributed to Triple-A pitching coach Frank Viola, who had a great one during his career, and who has settled Syndergaard down as well.
Whenever any team comes calling on the Mets to discuss trade possibilities, the two names every team starts with are Syndergaard and Steven Matz. The trade rumors don't bother Syndegaard -- hey, he's still here!
All right, so it's a clean slate. What would Syndergaard have in mind as a perfect season if everything worked out according to plan?
I think the Mets might OK that script too.
C U soon
Eddie C.