Once the 2021 season came to an end for the Mets on Oct. 3, Noah Syndergaard, who started the game and pitched an inning against the Braves, said, “It would be a tough pill to swallow not wearing a Mets jersey next year.”
It’s been a little over a month since then and Syndergaard is now a member of the Los Angeles Angels after signing a one-year, $21 million contract on Tuesday. Syndergaard had the option of staying in New York, though, after the Mets extended him the qualifying offer of $18.4 million. But, it wasn’t just the extra money that had the 29-year-old running for Hollywood.
“It definitely was in the back of my head a little bit,” Syndergaard said about the Mets not having a manager or general manager during that time. “This is a really important year for me. This is kind of a make or break time for me. I didn’t want to gamble on that kind of uncertainty that has been going on with them.”
As it would turn out, the Mets ended up signing former Angels GM Billy Eppler to be their next general manager after a month’s long search.
According to Syndergaard, he also hadn’t really heard from the Mets over the last two months but did acknowledge that the organization had “a lot going on” in terms of filling up voids elsewhere.
Syndergaard also lauded the Angels’ great hitting with players like Mike Trout, Shohei Ohtani, Anthony Rendon and Jared Walsh and welcomed the fresh start he would be getting in Los Angeles.
“It was the hardest decision of my life, but I definitely think that I made the right decision,” Syndergaard said.