Noah could be an All-Star-ter
Noah could be in line to start All-Star Game — if elbow’s OK
Noah Syndergaard will take the mound on Friday for the Mets against the Nationals at Citi Field, which means he could be in line to start the All-Star Game on Tuesday in San Diego — a possibility his manager didn’t dismiss.
Asked on Wednesday if the timing of Syndergaard’s final outing of the first half merited consideration of the right-hander taking the hill, Terry Collins said: “It puts him in the mix, yeah.”
But the manager of both the Mets and the NL AllStars added the obvious: The fact Syndergaard has been pitching with a bone spur in his right elbow “weighs” on the decision.
Syndergaard’s chances no doubt increased thanks to the unavailability of Dodgers’ left-hander Clay- ton Kershaw, who landed on the disabled list because of a herniated disk in his lower back.
Still, there are several reasons why it might not happen, according to Collins.
As Collins pointed out: “There [are] some other guys that are pretty good, too. We’ve got a nice group to select from.”
In addition to some stiff competition from the likes of Washington’s Stephen Strasburg — who will face Syndergaard on Friday — as well as reigning NL Cy Young Award winner Jake Arrieta and Jon Lester of the Cubs, Julio Teheran of the Braves, Jose Fernandez of Miami and San Francisco’s Johnny Cueto, there’s also the elbow.
Syndergaard alleviated some concerns by bouncing back from his worst performance of the year versus Washington with a strong outing against the Cubs in which he gave up one run, struck out eight and didn’t walk anyone in a lopsided Mets win, but the team might not want to push him too hard.
Syndergaard already has dealt with more than one issue with his elbow this season, starting with his May 1 outing against the Giants. That led to an MRI exam. He also was removed from his June 22 start versus the Royals and has been on anti-inflammatory medicine.
And since Steven Matz also is dealing with a bone spur in his elbow and Matt Harvey landed on the disabled list on Wednesday with right shoulder discomfort, there figures to be even more importance placed on Syndergaard’s right arm.