Noah Syndergaard had himself a good afternoon in Queens on Thursday.
Syndergaard got the start for the Mets in their series finale with the Reds, and turned in his best start of the season. Thor threw a complete game shutout, allowing four hits and walking one while striking out ten Cincinnati hitters. Syndergaard also generated a pair of double plays during the game, and a Reds hitter didn’t reach second base until pinch runner Michael Lorenzen stole second with two outs in the top of the ninth inning.
But the Mets’ offense didn’t show up to the ballpark either, and Syndergaard had to do all the work there too. He accounted for the game’s lone run, a solo homer in the third inning off of Reds’ starter Tyler Mahle.
Absolutely #crushed. 😱👋@Noahsyndergaard goes over the Great Wall of Flushing. #PitchersWhoRake pic.twitter.com/31ETkLKjal
— New York Mets (@Mets) May 2, 2019
How often has a pitcher thrown a complete game shutout while homering to drive in his team’s lone run? You have to go all the way back to 1983 for the last time it happened, when Bob Welch shut down (coincidentally enough) the Reds and won the game with a dinger.
Noah Syndergaard is the 1st pitcher to throw a shutout and win 1-0 on his own solo HR since Bob Welch for the Dodgers on June 17, 1983…also vs the Reds.
— Sarah Langs (@SlangsOnSports) May 2, 2019
It’s been a rough 2019 for Syndergaard so far, as he game into today’s game with a 6.35 ERA in six starts (despite 39 strikeouts in 24 innings). After the shutout, his ERA fell more than a run to 5.02. Maybe this start will be the one that turns Syndergaard’s year around and helps the Mets get over the hump they’ve been struggling to pass over the last couple of weeks.
