The newest member of the Los Angeles Dodgers starting rotation, Noah Syndergaard, announced he’s hoping to connect with fans through health and wellness.
Syndergaard came into Major League Baseball as a highly-touted, flamethrowing right-hander, and that’s exactly who he was for the better part of his first four seasons with the New York Mets. But in 2019, Syndergaard’s production tapered off, and so did his availability after Tommy John surgery that required him to miss almost two full seasons.
In a short time following the announcement of his one-year, $13 million contract with the Dodgers, Syndergaard has shown he’s willing to provide good insight into him as a player and person.
Syndergaard noted that his training style and health became important pieces to his recovery, and on his Instagram account, put out information regarding a wellness giveaway that fans can take part in to celebrate the new year.
Fans have already begun responding, eager to win some fun items courtesy of the newest Dodgers starting pitcher.
When connecting the dots between Syndergaard, his recovery and transformation, it’s difficult to forget how large of a human he is. Standing 6’6″ and weighing around 240 pounds, Syndergaard felt pressured to change how he worked out amid needing Tommy John.
“So instead of continuing to do what made me really good and just chalking it up to Tommy John surgery that a lot of pitchers and baseball players go through, I completely did an overhaul of my training program,” Syndergaard said during a conference all.
“My emphasis in the weight room was a lot of mobility, athleticism, and kind of shifted away from the strength and explosiveness.”
His mid-to-upper 90s fastball wasn’t there following Tommy John surgery, but he’s vowed to get back to that. This past season he went a 10-10 with a 3.94 ERA over 25 games (24 starts) for the Los Angeles Angels and Philadelphia Phillies.
What the Dodgers can expect from Noah Syndergaard
After an average loss of 4 mph on his sinker since returning from elbow surgery, Syndergaard has needed to rely on sequencing and movement as his primary focus.
A loss in velocity hasn’t hindered the success of his top pitch, and the real issue has come with an inability to figure out the changeup. In 2019, it was one of the best in baseball with a run value of -10, but in 2022 it exploded to +8, with a .373 wOBA allowed.
Syndergaard’s workload should increase the further removed he is from Tommy John, and the Dodgers will undoubtedly monitor his status. The hope is that they’ll incorporate his secondary stuff the same way Tyler Anderson did in his one season in L.A., mainly with his changeup.
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