Toronto Blue Jays: Scouting Report and Analysis on Prospect Noah Syndergaard

The Toronto Blue Jays boast one of the best and most exciting pitching trios in the minor leagues, with Aaron Sanchez, Justin Nicolino and Noah Syndergaard all pitching for low Class-A Lansing in the Midwest League.

All three pitchers were drafted in 2010 as part of Alex Anthopoulos’ first draft as general manager of the Blue Jays. They were taken as a way to ring in the franchise’s new philosophy to go after high-upside players who might require a little more time in the minors but can pay huge dividends down the road.

I had the luxury of being able to see Syndergaard take the mound on Wednesday night, as Lansing played host to Cincinnati’s low Class-A affiliate Dayton. There were some bumps in the road toward the end of his outing, but it is not hard to see why he has such a tremendous future in this game.

We will discuss the bad, but let’s start with the good stuff first. Syndergaard has a great pitcher’s frame. He is listed at 6’5”, 200 pounds and he carries it very well. He is very lean and athletic with a strong mound presence at just 19 years old.

When Syndergaard was drafted out of high school, his fastball was in the low-90s with a lot of projection and velocity likely to come as his body has matured. Less than two years later, it is clear that he has found the fastball everyone was expecting from him.

His first pitch came in at 96 mph, and he was hitting 93-98 with it throughout his 3.2 innings pitched. The Dayton hitters were so clearly overmatched that Syndergaard probably could have gotten away with just that pitch for most of his outing.

Syndergaard also spins a hard, sharp curveball at 72-75 mph. He did not have a consistent release point with it, but his best one came in the sixth inning when he froze everyone in the stadium including the umpire and nearly broke Nick O’Shea’s knees.

He also mixed in a changeup that ranged from 85-89, though that was clearly his third pitch and one he was least comfortable throwing. One problem he has had in the past with the changeup is slowing his arm down, and that held true in this game.

Syndergaard uses a very slow, controlled delivery. He makes great use of his 6’5” body to stay on top of the ball and throw downhill.

As for the bad of the outing, it was clear in the eighth inning—Syndergaard came on in the fifth in relief—that he was out of gas. His velocity was still there, but he didn’t have a good feel for any of his pitches and was just trying to blow everyone away with fastballs.

Prior to that inning, Syndergaard gave up just one hit—a double in the fifth that should have been a single but the center fielder tried to make a spectacular play instead of keeping the ball in front of him.

But the eighth was when everything broke down. His command, which was spotty all game, completely abandoned him. He was leaving his fastballs in the middle of the plate and up, allowing hitters to square up the mid-90s velocity. He wound up giving up five hits and five runs in the inning and he hit a batter.

It was a poor finish to what was otherwise a strong showing for one of the most intriguing arms in the minors. Syndergaard has a long way to go before he reaches his full potential, but it is hard not to love what he can bring to a big-league rotation in 2015. 

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