Listen, we know it’s tough to catch up on everything happening in the baseball world each morning. There are all kinds of stories, rumors, game coverage, and Vines of dudes getting hit in the beans every day. Trying to find all of it while on your way to work or sitting at your desk just isn’t easy. It’s OK, though. We’re going to do the heavy lifting for you each morning and find the things you need to see from within the SB Nation baseball network, as well as from elsewhere. Please hold your applause until the end, or at least until after you subscribe to the newsletter.
Noah Syndergaard skipped an MRI for an injury even the Mets were worried about
Monday’s Say Hey, Baseball looks at Noah Syndergaard’s terrible decision, Anthony Rendon’s huge Sunday, and Michael Brantley’s successful return.
Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images
* * *
Leave it to the Mets to win a series against the division- and NL-leading Nationals but make it feel like they lost. New York took the first two games of the three-game set from Washington, but then dropped the finale on Sunday, 23-5. Not only were they blown out, but they lost ace Noah Syndergaard to injury in the second inning. That moment, with proper precautions, might have been avoided.
Syndergaard was scratched from his start on Thursday with biceps tendinitis, as he couldn’t lift his arm above his shoulders. He refused to get an MRI to take a closer look at the injury, and the Mets didn’t push him into changing his mind and doing the smart thing even though they were the ones who requested he get his arm looked at. So, that’s how we ended up with Syndergaard starting on Sunday, leaving the game early due to an arm injury, and the Mets feeling like they lost a series they had won before the day even began.
As Emma Span joked about and Ken Rosenthal noted, the Mets tend to downplay injuries. If even they were concerned, we should be surprised Syndergaard even still had his arm attached to his body on Sunday. On Monday, Thor will get the MRI he should have already received, but as John Smoltz pointed out within that Rosenthal piece, it’s not like the MRI is going to help Syndergaard (or other young pitchers) differentiate between injury and soreness.
[Update: 11:19 a.m.] The Mets announced the results of Syndergaard’s MRI, and he has a partial tear of his right lat muscle and will be placed on the 10-day disabled list.
- Wil Myers broke a tie between the Padres and Giants in the 12th inning with this three-run shot. The Padres would go on to win, 5-2, giving them the series and helping keep San Francisco in the NL West basement.
- The Mets lost by as much as they did in large part due to Anthony Rendon, who went 6-for-6 with three homers and 10 RBI, all of which you can watch here.
- Whether they rebuild or stay the course, the Blue Jays need Jose Bautista to be better.
- Jurickson Profar’s 2017 isn’t going as planned, as he was optioned to Triple-A by the Rangers to make room for Pete Kozma.
- If you’re a panicking Rays fan, don’t. Help is on the way.
- Greg Bird hasn’t been very good yet in 2017, but the Yankees should continue to be patient with the young slugger.
- Jeff Sullivan writes that the White Sox have had one of the best pitchers on the planet.
- Michael Brantley missed the 2016 season and the Indians’ run to the World Series, but he’s here in 2017, making his presence felt.
See More:
