How can a player pitch to a 1.95 ERA, with 47 strikeouts and only five walks in a month possibly move down in the rankings? Well, it’s mostly because of this:
Whether Noah Syndergaard meant to throw at Chase Utley or not, he got ejected after just 2.1 innings and cost himself most of a start. Even with the recent bullpen outing, Syndergaard fell behind in the inning and strikeout races and with the performances of the pitchers ahead of him that’s all it took to knock him down a peg.
Now, don’t think that he won’t climb right back up next month if he doesn’t have any more trouble with umpires. Syndergaard still ranks second in WAR, third in ERA and first in FIP and at 23 looks like he’s going to be one of the best right-handers in the league for the foreseeable future. His fastball average now sits at 98 mph and he’s touched 102 on occasion. His slider, unbelievably, has clocked in at an average of 91.4 mph, which is quicker than the average fastball of 22 qualified NL starters.
The most amazing thing about Syndergaard though isn’t the video-game stuff, it’s his command that any pitcher not named Kershaw would envy. The Mets ace has issued just nine walks this season, giving him a nine-to-one K/BB ratio.
Somehow, even with all of that excellence he only has a 5-2 record on the year, and though most should be able to see through it, older voters will still hold it against him. With the Mets struggling to stay in the NL East race they’ll need the offense to help out what is an outstanding pitching staff and start piling up wins for Syndergaard and Co.
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