New York Mets general manager Brodie Van Wagenen is still high on his team’s rotation despite losing Noah Syndergaard to Tommy John surgery.
In March, the New York Mets received one of their first major health-related setbacks of the year. Due to a torn UCL suffered prior to the cancelation of spring training games, it was announced that Noah Syndergaard was to undergo Tommy John surgery. This would effectively end his 2020 season and make his return date to the mound sometime in 2021.
Now, we don’t know how the season will turn out amid the coronavirus pandemic. But regardless of the campaign’s fate, Mets general manager Brodie Van Wagenen is expressing confidence in his rotation despite the loss of Thor.
“Noah is a big part of the Mets family,” Van Wagenen said in a text this week, per Dan Martin of the New York Post. “Losing a player like him for the season is tough, but we are confident in the other pitchers we have on the roster can rise to the challenge. Adding depth to our rotation was a priority this offseason. Both Rick Porcello and Michael Wacha are proven Starting Pitchers with championship pedigrees who have been very impressive this Spring.”
The right-hander’s procedure, which took place last week, turned out to be successful.
Syndergaard was looking to experience a bounce-back year after struggling mightily in 2019. Last season, he recorded career-worsts in ERA (4.28) and WHIP (1.234) while posting a 10-8 record through 32 starts. Needless to say, he looked far from the type of pitcher he was during his 2016 All-Star campaign.
The Mets rotation still includes two-time Cy Young Award winner Jacob deGrom, Marcus Stroman, Steven Matz, Porcello, and Wacha. But going even further than that, Van Wagenen is portraying belief in some of the other options on the staff.
“As we know, a team can never have enough depth but we are fortunate to have a group of pitchers beyond the five who we believe can be successful starters, including Seth Lugo and Robert Gsellman,” he said.
The Mets had just 13 spring training games remaining before the league took action with everyone’s safety in mind. As far as the season is concerned, no one truly knows what the next steps will be moving forward.
