Noah Syndergaard Holds Tryout For 15 Teams

Former All-Star and New York Mets ace Noah Syndergaard had an inauspicious season in 2023, compiling a 6.50 ERA, a 1.39 WHIP and a meager 5.7 strikeouts per nine innings for the Los Angeles Dodgers and Cleveland Guardians. The days of the $13 million+ contract offers are over for the 31-year-old, and he's now resorting to holding open bullpen sessions to try to convince major league teams to take a chance on him.

Yankees are among about 15 teams that have gone to watch one of Noah Syndergaard’s pen sessions. Their interest level is unknown but he was said to be in the mid 90’s.

— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) January 30, 2024

MLB Insider Jon Heyman reports that some 15 teams — half of MLB — showed up to watch a Syndergaard bullpen session. He reports that his fastball was said to be in the mid-90s, which would be a big improvement over the 92.2 mph he was throwing last season, which put him in the 22nd percentile of all starting pitchers in the majors.

Even worse, his strikeout percentage (K%) was in the 2nd percentile (yikes!) at 14.3%. Equally anemic, his whiff percentage (inducing a swing and a miss) was in the 3rd percentile. 

And all this, from a pitcher, once known as Thor, who made his mark as a fireballer, regularly striking out more than a batter per inning and his fastball was hitting 98-99 mph regularly, sitting in the 97-98th percentile of pitchers. 

But he's never been able to recover his velocity or strikeout ability since his Tommy John surgery in 2020, and he's become a back-end of the rotation starter at best. After his mediocre 2023, it'll be interesting to see if any team gives him a shot. A minor league deal is probably in the offing for Syndergaard. 

Photo: Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports