Newsday reports that Noah Syndergaard and Rafael Montero were reassigned to minor league camp on Tuesday morning.
“It’s always disappointing when you get a taste of being in the big-league clubhouse, getting the treatment like a big leaguer gets, and then you’ve got to go back over to the minor-league side where things aren’t so glamorous, ” said Syndergaard. “So that’s kind of disappointing,”
Syndergaard, the Mets top pitching prospect, had a 5.19 ERA in 8.2 innings this spring, striking out 10 and walking five. Montero had a 3.00 ERA in nine innings, striking out five and walking two. Neither were expected to make the team’s roster out of spring training, though both are likely to play a role during the 2014 season.
Righthander Joel Carreno and infielder Brandon Allen were also reassigned to minor league camp. Catcher Juan Centeno and righthander Ryan Reid were optioned down, too.
Despite his elevated ERA in camp, Syndergaard impressed with a dominating fastball and mature poise. The spring performance built on a superb 2013 campaign split between Single-A and Double-A. He posted a 3.06 ERA and 1.14 WHIP and struck out 133 in 117.2 innings last season.
Montero doesn’t have Syndergaard’s stellar repertoire, but possesses exceptional control. He split the 2013 season between Double-A and Triple-A, striking out 150 and walking 35 in 155.1 innings. He notched a 2.78 ERA and 1.10 WHIP in 27 starts overall.
I thought this was a good move by Sandy Alderson, coming on the heels of Terry Collins asserting that Montero was being considered as a bullpen option for the Mets to open the season.
When Collins told reporters that, I actually speculated that Alderson must have gulped upon hearing his manager make such a preposterous claim. Now the decision has been taken out of Collins’ hands only 48 hours later.
We’ll see both Montero and Syndergaard later this season when both are ready to contribute, and safely past the Super 2 cutoff.
