Ed Delany, MMO
No Met was as adamant in vying for the team to retain former pitching coach Dan Warthen than Noah Syndergaard.
Back in September, the 25-year-old said Warthen was not a problem, but part of the solution. However, he has adjusted to the Mets new pitching coach Dave Eiland, calling him amazing and said the transition has been easy.
“It’s been very seamless,” Syndergaard said Thursday, according to Mike Puma of the New York Post. “We are going to miss Dan, but working with Dave is amazing, just a guy who has a different perspective on things. I think part of the reason I really wanted to help out Dan at the end of the year was he really was getting blamed for something he shouldn’t get blamed for.”
The right-handed Syndergaard pitched in just seven games for New York last season, missing a majority of the campaign after partially tearing his lat in an April game versus the rival Washington Nationals.
This offseason, Syndergaard worked on becoming a more well-rounded athlete and lifted weights in a more smart way.
“Last year, I was doing a lot of pull-ups which is primarily a lat exercise,” he said. “This year, I haven’t done a pull-up yet. It’s different, it’s still taxing workouts, but I have never felt better.”
Eiland recently said the team is going to “err on the side of caution” with the players, but don’t want to baby them too much because they still need to get ready to go.
“You’re running a guy out there every night you feel you are going to win the game with,” he said. “As a pitching coach, it’s kind of the situation you want to be in. But that being said, it’s my job to prepare them most mentally and physically.
“If these guys don’t pitch up to their capabilities, it’s on me. I’ll take responsibility for that. I will be the first one to take the heat if they don’t get it done.’’
For Syndergaard, the name of the game is staying on the field and getting back to 2016 form. Hopefully, his pitching coach can help him achieve that feat by working closely with him this season.
