16. Noah Syndergaard
SP, New York Mets
- Career Stats: 24-16, 2.78 ERA, 404 SO, 2.62 FIP, 10.3 SO/9
- Career Accolades: 2016 All-Star
It is not jumping the shark to include Noah Syndergaard here over many more veteran MLB pitchers. The 24-year-old right-hander is simply that good. Baseball has never seen a starting pitcher with his combination of velocity, size, breaking stuff, and command. Syndergaard cruises with a fastball that routinely tops 100 mph and a slider in the low 90s. When he is in charge on the mound, hitters may as well go up to the plate without a bat.
Syndergaard entered 2017 with plenty of hype and high expectations, and he has done nothing to lower them. In three starts, he is 1-0 with a 0.95 ERA and has not allowed a walk while striking out 20. Syndergaard has not allowed a home run since last September. He led the majors with a 2.29 FIP last season and a rate of 0.5 HR/9.
Syndergaard has also been dominant in the playoffs in his first two seasons with the Mets. He has made five appearances with a 2.42 ERA and 36 strikeouts in only 26 innings. Standing 6-foot-6 and tipping the scales at nearly 250 pounds, Syndergaard has the potential to redefine what a starting pitcher can do. He is the most overpowering starting pitcher to come along in quite some time, and will only continue to climb this list in the coming years.