After the New York Mets pummeled Kansas City by a score of 9-3 in front of an electric and super charged Citi Field, some of the Royals players voiced their anger with tonight’s starter Noah Syndergaard after his first pitch of the game – a 98 mph fastball – came up and in at Alcides Escobar and put him on his ass.
“Everyone is upset about it,” Eric Hosmer told reporters. “You don’t want a teammate have his head thrown at, so everybody is upset.”
“I thought it was weak. Very weak,” added Alex Rios. “I thought it was unprofessional”
Both players and several others in the Kansas City dugout shouted right after and screamed from the dugout… Especially Mike Moustakas who let out a barrage of profanities so loud that you could hear it in the background of the broadcast.
But it was Syndergaard’s plan all along to set the tone for the game with that first pitch that made the statement, “You guys haven’t won anything yet!”
“I think Noah was just trying to wake everybody up,” Michael Cuddyer said. “And you know what, he did.”
After the game, Syndergaard told Steve Gelbs, “I wanted all of them to know ‘This is my fastball and that is my plate.’ That’s my plate out there, not theirs”
Later on during his press conference, when Syndergaard was told that Royals players were still angry about him pitching inside, he responded:
“I mean, I certainly wasn’t trying to hit the guy, that’s for sure. I just didn’t want him getting too comfortable. If they have a problem with me throwing inside, then they can meet me 60 feet, six inches away. I’ve got no problem with that.”
Oh my God!… I love this guy… Absolutely love him. He’s got brass ones.
