BALTIMORE -- Back to the drawing board.
New York Mets manager Terry Collins acknowledged that Noah Syndergaard's delaying his warm-up until closer to his first pitch of the game had little impact on the rookie right-hander. In fact, Syndergaard allowed three straight batters to reach in the first inning Wednesday, before he wriggled out of a bases-loaded jam unscathed.
Syndergaard ultimately was charged with three runs in five-plus innings in a no-decision that became a 5-4 walk-off loss to the Baltimore Orioles.
He surrendered a two-run homer to Jonathan Schoop in the sixth. That evened the score 3-3. Then he surrendered a single to Steve Clevenger before departing with none out in the frame.
Syndergaard is now 0-5 with a 5.05 ERA in nine career road starts. He is 7-1 with a 1.82 ERA in nine career starts at Citi Field.
"I feel like, with the exception of the first inning, it was a pretty solid performance, with the exception of that one mistake in the sixth inning," Syndergaard said. "A lot of people have been concerned about my performances on the road. I feel like this was a step in the right direction, as far as being more comfortable out there."
On the curveball to Schoop, Syndergaard said the pitch was the sharpest it has been all season, with the exception of that one hanger.
"It's the big leagues," Syndergaard said. "That's what he's paid to do."
