Syndergaard on leaving Mets for LA: ‘Hardest decision of my life’
In the final week of the season, Noah Syndergaard gushed about how he cherished his time with the Mets and wanted to return. He felt like New York was home. He knew his teammates and loved the fans.
Then in a stunning move last week, he left for the Los Angeles Angels.
“It was the hardest decision of my life, but I definitely think I made the right decision,” Syndergaard said of leaving the Mets during an introductory press conference with the Angels.
Syndergaard said he “didn’t really hear from (the Mets) much within the last two months” but didn’t seem to take it personally. He said he understood the Mets were dealing with a lot as they tried to find someone to lead baseball operations.
And on the same day the Mets introduced Billy Eppler as their new general manager, their former pitcher, Syndergaard, said the lack of a GM affected his thinking.
“It definitely was in the back of my head a little bit,” Syndergaard said. “This is a really important year for me. This is kind of a make or break time for me. I didn’t want to gamble on that kind of uncertainty that has been going on with them.”
Since 2015, Syndergaard pitched in 121 games – 120 of them starts – for the Mets. He went 47-31 a 3.32 ERA. The last two years did not go as he had hoped because he had Tommy John surgery last spring.
He missed all of 2020, then most of 2021. In a way, his Mets tenure ended without much celebration – though that might be because most people figured he would return.
Then the Angels signed him to a oneyear deal worth a reported $21 million, which is about $2.5 million more than the one-year, $18.4 million qualifying offer the Mets extended to the righty. Did he want to leave the East Coast? “I don’t think it had anything to do with playing in New York on the East Coast,” Syndergaard said. “I think just being in the big leagues for six years and the organization for eight, regardless of where I was, I think it was time for a change in scenery just so I could get back to my old self. The last two years I felt like I was stuck in a limbo, sort of a rut. I feel like it’s one year to get back to where I used to be.”