Dodgers News: Noah Syndergaard Trying to Battle Against Career-Long Bugaboo

Noah Syndergaard is back on the bump for the Dodgers today in Tampa Bay and is again trying to get back on track. The same thing he’s been trying all season. Since his first start of the season, he’s struggled to a 6.62 ERA over 8 starts with most of the damage being done early in games. And also in the middle of games… but he’s focusing on the early parts of games.

“The first two innings have been my Achilles heel my whole career,” Syndergaard said after a recent outing. “It’s just been paralysis by analysis, trying to feel certain things in my delivery as opposed to just focusing on executing pitches.”

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Via OCR

Syndergaard has a 3.00 ERA in the first innings of games, 12.38 in the 2nd innings before settling down to a 2.25 ERA in 3rd innings then blowing back up to 6.75 in the 4th and 9 in the 5th innings. He’s focusing on just the first two innings but this season he’s struggled all throughout games.

Given the state of the starting rotation, the Dodgers need Syndergaard to step up in a big way while guys like Julio Urias and Dustin May sidelined and two rookies filling in for the time being. He’s now two full weeks removed from a blister/finger issue that forced him from a start in Pittsburgh and should be primed to pitch deeper into the game. That is if the Rays don’t get to him first.

First pitch is set for 3:40 PM PT.

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