Noah date for return
takes stress off his shoulder.
“I just feel really free and light,” he said. “I feel like my shoulder is functioning properly.”
Syndergaard recently admitted the lat injury taught him a lesson about overtraining for strength, but on Tuesday he said he’s still going to go at it hard in the weight room — but with more emphasis on the flexibility in general and the hip mobility in particular.
“I’m still going to lift heavy and be strong,” he said. “We’re still professional athletes here, gotta be strong and durable.
“And I still expect to be the same guy in terms of velocity. I feel like a lot of the mobility stuff I’m doing will allow my hips to stay closed, and fire at the last possible second. Jacob deGrom gets a lot of swings and misses off his fastball, and I feel like a lot of that is attributable to his mobility. He’s a really flexible guy.”
That is part of Syndergaard’s motivation for increasing his flexibility. No less significant, he thinks it might allow him to throw with less than maximum effort on every pitch.
“I’ve thought about that,” he said. “I feel like my new mobility will allow me to do that. Ever since I’ve pitched, had to go 100 percent or sacrifice location. So I’d like to work in the 95-98 range, and then when I need 100 or 101, I can throw that.”
Terry Collins said he’s all for Syndergaard prioritizing flexibility in his workouts, mostly because he believes it will help him avoid more injuries.
“No question about it,” Collins said. “All of these guys have to start getting to be more flexibile. They’re so big and strong. And, again, I’m not a doctor, I’m just going on what I see.
“These guys are so strong, and it puts so much pressure on those little fast-twitch muscles that at some point something’s gotta give.”