After revealing that fifth-starter Dillon Gee will be set back with groin discomfort, the New York Mets announced that No. 1 prospect RHP Noah Syndergaard will be recalled from Triple-A Las Vegas, and will start Tuesday when they travel to Chicago and face the Cubs.
Syndergaard, 22, had been slated to debut last season, but his promotion was put on hold after struggling in the Pacific Coast League. He was added to the 40-man roster this offseason, but was sent back to Las Vegas, partially because of the immense pitching depth in the Mets rotation. One of the pitchers in his way was Gee, 29, who had a mediocre start against the Nationals on Sunday and subsequently complained of groin soreness.
The 6’6″, 240-pound Syndergaard began his career in the Blue Jays organization, and was dealt to the Mets in the blockbuster trade that sent Cy Young winner R.A. Dickey north of the border. Ranked as the Mets best prospect by MLB.com, Baseball America, and Baseball Prospectus, Syndergaard has gotten off to a roaring start in 2015, going 3-0 with a 1.82 ERA and holding opponents to .182 average. He even showed off with the bat in his last outing, smashing a 2-run home run and falling a triple short of the cycle, while striking out eight batters over eight innings. His WHIP of 0.94 ranks second in the PCL.
Gee caught a break in Spring Training when Zack Wheeler needed Tommy John surgery, as it allowed the six-year veteran to slide into the rotation. He’s been decent, but nothing more, going 0-2 with a 3.86 ERA in five starts.
Any way you look at it, the debut of Syndergaard has been long-awaited by many fans around baseball, as the man they call “Thor” will add a big punch to a Mets rotation that already includes the likes of Matt Harvey, Bartolo Colon, and Jacob deGrom.
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