Noah Syndergaard pictured himself making his big-league debut with the Toronto Blue Jays one day. He felt a connection with the organization that drafted him out of Mansfield Legacy with the 38th overall pick in the 2010 First-Year Player Draft, and spent three years developing him into one of their top prospects.
But Syndergaard realized the hard truth about professional baseball this past off-season -- every prospect is on the trading block.The Blue Jays had an opportunity to land reigning Cy Young winner R.A. Dickey from the Mets, and they didn't think twice about shipping the hard-throwing right-hander from Texas to New York."I didn't think I'd be traded, but being traded for the reigning Cy Young winner is pretty cool," said Syndergaard, who reported to Mets spring training in Port St. Lucie, Fla., on Monday."Now I'm going to do whatever I can to contribute to the Mets' organization and try and help them win the World Series."Syndergaard will be known for years as one of the pieces the Mets received in exchange for Dickey, although he won't be viewed as the centerpiece of the deal. That label belongs to top catching prospect Travis d'Arnaud.Still, Syndergaard has developed into one of the top pitching prospects in the game. The Blue Jays drafted him as a raw prospect out of Legacy and signed him for $600,000. At the time, he had a projectable frame at 6-foot-4, 210 pounds, threw in the mid-to-high 90s and was only 17.Now, the 20-year-old Syndergaard is 6-7, 240 with slightly more velocity on his fastball and an improved breaking pitch and changeup. He's learned how to become a more effective pitcher physically and mentally, too.Similar to Justin Verlander, Syndergaard will start the game off with his fastball sitting in the 92-95 mph range. Once he establishes the strike zone, Syndergaard can reach back and throw 98 mph if he has to."It's night and day from where I was at coming out of high school," Syndergaard said. "Everything has improved and gotten better. I couldn't hold a runner on base to save my life, and had no inkling of when to pick off. So I improved that and also establishing a curveball made a huge difference for me. And I've really improved my changeup, that's become a good out pitch."Last season was a breakout year for Syndergaard. He had pitched well in his first five professional games to end the 2010 season, and jumped two levels in 2011 from rookie ball to Low A to Class A.Last year, though, he set career highs in innings pitched (103 2/3), strikeouts (122) and wins (8) at Class A Lansing. He spent all year with the Lugnuts, compiling a 2.60 ERA and showing he has the pitches to become an effective starter in the majors."Noah is a very high-ceiling power pitcher," Mets general manager Sandy Alderson told reporters earlier this winter. "We believe that he's got tremendous upside potential."Syndergaard is determined to reach that upside potential, and is ready for whatever the Mets throw at him. He doesn't know where he'll start this season, possibly back at Class A or Double A, but his new dream is to wear a Mets uniform one day."Wherever they put me, I'm going to be fine with and start working my way up to the big leagues," Syndergaard said.
Local watch
Five area players rising up the minor league systems to watch:
| Position | Name | Organization | Area school |
| OF | Michael Choice | Oakland | UT Arlington |
| He missed the second half last year with a fractured hand, but is in A's big league camp ready to go. | |||
| LHP | Hoby Milner | Philadelphia | FW Paschal |
| A seventh-round pick out of the University of Texas last year pitched most of the season in Class A. As a 22-year-old lefty, he might not need too many years in the minors. | |||
| RHP | Ross Stripling | LA Dodgers | SL Carroll |
| A fifth-round draft pick out of Texas A&M last year spent the season in rookie ball. He could be on a fast track, though, as a 23-year-old. | |||
| 1B | Max Muncy | Oakland | Keller |
| Played in 54 games at Class A last year, batting .275 with 20 doubles, four home runs and 23 RBIs. | |||
| LHP | Matt Purke | Washington | TCU |
| Shoulder surgery wrecked his season last year, but if he's healthy and returns to form he will be another special arm in the Nationals' farm system. | |||
Texas Rangers manager has no qualms on maligned off-season
Mike Olt confident he can catch on as outfielder with Rangers
Have more to add? News tip? Tell us
