Noah Syndergaard and the Angels have reached an agreement on a deal, pending a physical, which according to ESPN reports is $21 million over one year, and this has been confirmed by an industry source.
Even though there is an issue with the right elbow which everybody is aware of, has also plagued the 29-year-old over the past two seasons, the physical examination will obviously be more than a formality in this case, and Noah Syndergaard is expected to decide his fate by Wednesday’s deadline to accept the Mets’ one-year, $18.4 million qualifying offer.
Noah Syndergaard’s ability to top the qualifying offer despite only appearing in two games (totaling two innings) in the final week of the 2021 season demonstrates 1) the appetite for pitching among contenders, and 2) the willingness of clubs to spend despite the threat of an owners lockout.
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Noah Syndergaard’s departure would be a blow to a Mets team that was already short on pitching depth and saw the right-retention hander’s as an upside play. If Billy Eppler clears the final hurdles to become the team’s new general manager, he will inherit a staff riddled with unknowns, including the team’s most consistent performer last season, Marcus Stroman, who is also a free agent.
The 6-foot-6 blond, acquired from Toronto in the 2012 R.A. Dickey trade, quickly became a fan favorite upon his promotion to the big leagues in 2015 and won two games during the team’s thrilling postseason run. In 2016, he had his best overall season, finishing eighth on the ballot for the National League Cy Young Award.
He never ascended to such heights again, despite contributing significantly in 2018 and 2019, before undergoing Tommy John’s surgery in March 2020. The only way back to the Mets now is to overcome a lingering complication from his arm problems.
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