MLB Analyst Doesn’t Think Dodgers Should Give Up on Noah Syndergaard Just Yet

The Noah Syndergaard experiment has gotten off to an ugly start for the Dodgers this season. And he gets the baseball again today following a rough loss for LA in Cincinnati.

Through 11 starts, Syndergaard is 1-4 with an abysmal 6.54 ERA, one that would be by far the worst of his career, not including the 2021 season in which he pitched just two innings.

Syndergaard came to Los Angeles hoping to revitalize his career, one that hasn’t been the same following Tommy John surgery. He put in the work all offseason to get back to being ‘Thor,’ but unfortunately, it just has not come to fruition.

The Dodgers are 4-7 in Syndergaard’s starts entering Wednesday against the Reds, which somewhat feels like his last chance to prove that he belongs in the rotation. While pretty much every Dodger fan is calling for the team to move on from Syndergaard, ESPN analyst and former player Doug Glanville had a different idea when he spoke to DodgersNation.com’s Doug McKain in a recent conversation. He thinks Syndergaard can still be useful in some capacity for the Dodgers — he just needs to change his approach.

“You don’t have to throw through a wall. You still can pitch, and use that data and that information to get people off balance,” Glanville said. “There are still plenty of pitchers that don’t necessarily throw the ball through a brick wall and still know how to pitch and get through a lineup. …

“Now you just have to put your team in a position to succeed, and as long as they believe he has the tools to do that, then they need to give him that belief, too, and make sure that he knows that it’s important to find it and stay focused on it. Because if he can do that, that’s another arm that they absolutely need.”

Syndergaard got the nickname ‘Thor’ for not only his long, blonde hair, but for his ability to blow fastballs by hitter. He was once a triple-digit throwing flamethrower, but he’s just not that guy anymore. Glanville, however, thinks he can still be effective in other ways.

He told McKain that Syndergaard could be more of a situational pitcher for this team, potentially a long-reliever or just someone who throws a few innings as an opener and does his job. If the Dodgers can instill in him the confidence to play that role well, they can fix this otherwise ugly reclamation project attempt.

Syndergaard will get another chance on Wednesday against the Reds in the hitters’ ballpark that is Great American. However, Syndergaard has actually thrown very well there in his career, sporting a 2.29 ERA in 19.2 innings. He’s won all three starts he’s made in Cincinnati.

Let’s hope for similar luck in a Dodgers uniform.

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