Noah Syndergaard was a bit of an enigma this season. He showed flashes of his past dominance, but there were also missteps, weaknesses, and injuries that led to a bit of an uneven season for the righty.
The offseason did not get off to the best start for Syndergaard, who was very vocal in his support for pitching coach Dan Warthen who, in anticipation of a new manager, was let go. Eventually, he replaced by Dave Eiland. Syndergaard embraced the change and impressed his new coaches enough that he was named the Opening Day starter, although a minor back issue for Jacob deGrom also influenced that decision.