Former All-Star One Step Closer To Returning To Big Leagues

Noah Syndergaard is one step closer to returning to the big leagues. On Friday, the White Sox promoted Syndergaard to Triple-A Charlotte. 

Noah Syndergaard signed a minor league deal with the White Sox on June 24. The right-hander will earn $30,000 per month in the minors and a $1.75 million base salary if promoted to the majors. His contract includes performance bonuses — $50,000 for reaching 40 innings and $100,000 each for surpassing 55 and 75 innings — as well as a release clause if he is not on the big-league roster by Aug. 1.

Before the promotion, Syndergaard threw 15.1 innings across six games in the Arizona Complex League, posting a 2.93 ERA. 

Syndergaard last pitched in the majors on Aug. 27, 2023, making 12 starts for the Dodgers and six for the Guardians that season. Over 88.2 innings, he posted a 6.50 ERA, walked a career-high 6.9% of batters, and allowed opponents to hit .291 against him. He also recorded a career-low strikeout rate of just 12.4%.

It’s a far cry from the pitcher who burst onto the scene in 2015, finishing fourth in Rookie of the Year voting with a 3.24 ERA over 150 innings with the Mets. The following year, Syndergaard—nicknamed “Thor”—earned an All-Star nod after posting a 2.60 ERA, striking out 29.3% of batters and generating a 50.5% ground ball rate over 183.2 innings. 

Over his first five seasons with the Mets, Syndergaard compiled a 3.31 ERA with a 26.4% strikeout rate and 5.6% walk rate across 716 innings, leading the league with two complete games in 2018.

Injuries have taken a toll on the 32-year-old. Syndergaard underwent Tommy John surgery in May 2020 to repair a torn UCL, sidelining him for the entire 2020 season and limiting him to just two innings in 2021. But the injury concerns began well before that. He was limited to just seven starts (30.1 innings) in 2017 due to a torn lat, and in 2018, he landed on the injured list twice — once for a torn ligament in his finger and again after a bizarre bout with hand, foot, and mouth disease.

Syndergaard should have plenty of opportunities to prove himself, with Adrian Houser likely to be traded at the deadline. 

Getz told reporters after trading for Aaron Civale that the team could turn to a six-man rotation, making the Syndergaard signing a low-risk, high-reward move, offering some depth and taking pressure off the White Sox’s young arms.

It’s unlikely Syndergaard will return to ace form after missing nearly two years. Since his Tommy John surgery, Thor has looked like a shell of himself, posting a 4.99 ERA and 15.9% strikeout rate. He has also lost at least six miles per hour on a fastball that used to flirt with triple-digits. But the White Sox don’t need him to be an ace. If Syndergaard can just be a reliable MLB starter, this minor league gamble will be a worthwhile investment for Getz.