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Mets: Fantasy impact of Noah Syndergaard’s injury

By Bill Pivetz

Apr 30, 2017; Washington, DC, USA; New York Mets starting pitcher Noah Syndergaard (34) walks off the field after an apparent injury against the Washington Nationals in the second inning at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 30, 2017; Washington, DC, USA; New York Mets starting pitcher Noah Syndergaard (34) walks off the field after an apparent injury against the Washington Nationals in the second inning at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports /
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After refusing an MRI, Mets ace Noah Syndergaard has a partial tear of his right lat muscle. His absence will create an already big hole for fantasy owners.

The New York Mets had a lot of injuries to the starting rotation last season. A month into this season and things look to be going down the same path. Mets ace Noah Syndergaard suffered a torn lat muscle and there is no timetable for his return. How does his absence affect fantasy baseball?

Syndergaard looked to have suffered the injury in his start on Sunday. He was scheduled to start the previous Thursday but was pushed back to Sunday. He declined to take an MRI and we got the infamous quote.

"“I think I know my body best. I’m pretty in tune with my body, and that’s exactly why I refused to take the MRI.”"

Well, the Mets ownership, fans and his fantasy owners wished he underwent the MRI at that time. The MRI he did take revealed a partial tear of his right lat muscle as the Mets official Twitter posted on Monday.

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He will be placed on the 10-day DL but I wouldn’t be surprised if he gets transferred to the 60-day. David Lennon of Newsday tweeted that Steven Matz had a similar injury back in 2015 and spent two months on the DL. Syndergaard joins Matz and Seth Lugo as the current injured Mets pitchers.

Syndergaard was off to a pretty good start this season. He had a 3.29 ERA, 1.098 WHIP, 1.01 FIP, 10.5 K/9, 0.7 BB/0 and 1-2 record.

He had a great start on April 20, going seven innings, striking out 10 batters and allowing two runs. His last outing lasted just 1.1 innings after giving up five runs. At the time of the injury, he was the 24th-best starting pitcher on the Player Rater.

As mentioned at the beginning, the Mets had a similar situation last season. Syndergaard and Bartolo Colon were the only ones to make at least 30 starts. This season, Jacob deGrom, Matt Harvey, previously injured Zack Wheeler and Robert Gsellman will carry the rotation. Rafael Montero will take Syndergaard’s spot in the rotation on Friday.

If you are looking for a replacement, there are a lot of good options on the waiver wire. I talked about Miguel Gonzalez here and did warn you about his start against the Detroit Tigers. His next start will be against the Baltimore Orioles, another powerhouse team. He should still be added.

Jesse Hahn has pitched a quality start in all five games this season. He may not give you innings, four of his five starts went just six innings, but he limits runs. He faces the vaunted Tigers on Saturday.

Derek Holland is another short outing pitcher but has a 2.17 ERA and 1.14 WHIP with 23 strikeouts and 11 walks. He faces the bad Kansas City Royals offense on Thursday.

Next: Adam Eaton tears ACL, fantasy impact

If you are a Syndergaard owner, you got to keep in rostered and placed on the DL. When he’s healthy, he’s one of the best pitchers in the game. He should help you in the second half as you fight for a playoff spot. Maybe you can the Madison Bumgarner owner can share some stories.

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