Gavin Lux news and 3 takeaways from Dodgers clubhouse in spring training

Dodgers spring training: Noah Syndergaard talks velocity in debut

The third pitcher of the day for the Dodgers, Syndergaard was impressive in his first outing as a member of the Dodgers, despite not topping the mid-90s with his fastball.

Taking over in the fourth inning, the pitcher nicknamed Thor brought the thunder quickly, striking out two of the three batters he faced and allowing a harmless fly ball to center for his other out of the frame. Coming back out for the fifth, Syndergaard allowed his only hit of the day, an infield single that was smothered by Miguel Rojas, but still kept the Reds off the scoreboard.

At the end of his 24-pitch outing, Syndergaard said there was still plenty to work on when asked about his velocity which was in the low 90s.

“Not really,” Syndergaard said when asked about if that’s where he wanted to be at this stage of spring training. “But that’s just motivation to keep on working. I’m not too worried about it. I know it’s still in there.”

Velocity will be a question for Syndergaard moving forward. Once one of the hardest-throwing pitchers in the game, that has changed since an elbow injury and Tommy John surgery derailed him in 2020.

“There’s four months that you’re not throwing during your rehab. You kind of forget how to throw so I’m just trying to relearn how to throw hard again. It’s not the easiest thing to do,” Syndergaard said.