Noah Syndergaard, man. This guy is a hoss. The FOX bug in the corner of the screen had barely finished telling us we were watching "ROYALS METS" when he very unapologetically sent a 98 MPH message near Alcides Escobar's face and brought the Mets back into the World Series. Mike Moustakas was not a fan, but fuck him. It was unquestionably the best way to start this particular game.Down two games to a team that is swinging at (and hitting) almost everything, Syndergaard made sure Escobar wouldn't be able to lead off in his typical fashion. Watching in real time, it almost seemed like it might be a case of nerves: young kid, first World Series, etc. But then his second pitch was a curveball painted on the outside of the plate. This dude was not messing around.
Escobar didn't like it, obviously. After the game he said he would have preferred Syndergaard threw at his feet. That's reasonable and fair, but the point of the pitch wasn't to hit him. The point of the pitch was to scare the living shit out of him and make him and the rest of his buddies squirm in the batter's box. Escobar struck out and finished the game 1-4. It's possible the actual significance of the pitch, and "sending a message" could be overblown—the Royals still did their thing and touched up the Golden God for three runs; at least the Mets bats showed up—but that's because it felt so fucking awesome.
Advertisement
First things first: Noah Syndergaard, will you marry me? I'm a Yankees fan but we can work through that. Maybe soon you will be, too ;-) Second things second: this is so awesome I can barely write. He didn't dance around it after the game, he just came right out and said he was playing mind games. And then he Come at Me Bro'd the whole team.The Mets pitching staff is obviously loaded with guys throwing heat, but the Royals have been incredibly successful against them. Kansas City hit .284 against 95 MPH fastballs and above over the season, which is a bizarrely specific statistic, but the import is clear: speed doesn't bother them. They simply adjust and keep on hacking. Now, location? That might bother them. So out comes the 6-foot-6 Syndergaard, his blonde mane blowing in the wind like a goddamned movie, throwing gas high and tight."My intent on that pitch was to make them uncomfortable, and I feel like I did just that," Syndergaard said. "I think in every postseason game that Escobar has played in, he's swung at the first-pitch fastball. I didn't think he would want to swing at that one. "I mean, I certainly wasn't trying to hit the guy, that's for sure. I just didn't want him getting too comfortable. If they have a problem with me throwing inside, then they can meet me 60 feet, 6 inches away. I've got no problem with that."