Earlier this season, the Chicago White Sox gave former All-Star and veteran starting pitcher Noah Syndergaard another chance in professional baseball.
Syndergaard hadn't pitched since he was with the Cleveland Guardians during the 2023 season, but at 32 years old (when he signed), he wasn't quite ready to hang up the cleats.
The minor league deal would pay Syndergaard $1.75 million with additional performance incentives if he made it to MLB with the White Sox. If not, it would pay him $30,000 for every month he was in the minor leagues. The contract also included a release clause for Syndergaard to opt out if he was not in MLB by August 1.
With the White Sox needing some innings to support a young pitching staff for the home stretch of the 2025 season, Syndergaard was the perfect low-risk, high-reward acquisition.
After four outings with the ACL White Sox, Syndergaard was moved to Triple-A Charlotte. He had two rough starts for the Knights (10.13 ERA) before being released by Chicago on August 2.
A few weeks later, Syndergaard said in an interview with Todd Frazier that he got "shafted" by the White Sox organization.
Syndergaard claims he "got shafted" by the White Sox
"I kind of got shafted a little bit, not that my performance was anything to brag about. But there was like, I don't know how many starting pitchers they had on their roster. I was kind of the odd man out," said Syndergaard in an interview with Foul Territory.
"I only got two starts and I was kind of just hanging out there, because not competing for two years and going into a high stress environment...let me tell you the minor leagues freaking suck."
Mind you, Noah Syndergaard chose to sign with the White Sox because they were the only team willing to give him another chance. He was aware of the organization's starting pitching depth before he signed there.
According to Cambridge Dictionary, to "shaft" is "to cheat or trick someone, or to treat someone unfairly."
I'm having a hard time seeing how the White Sox tricked, cheated, or treated Syndergaard unfairly in the way they handled his contract. It'd be one thing if the White Sox held him captive in the minor leagues or made promises they didn't fulfill, but this was a minor league deal for a reason.
Syndergaard got paid roughly $40,000 to play five weeks of minor league baseball. Most of that time was spent in Arizona. He only made two starts against real minor league competition, and as soon as it was clear the Sox wouldn't be calling him up, they let him go.
Giving up nine (9) earned runs in eight (8) innings pitched and then claiming to be "shafted" when you're released is pretty rich.
I've always been a fan of Noah Syndergaard. I was rooting for him to complete his comeback with the White Sox, but this one isn't on the organization. It's solely on him.
He's still only 33 years old, but with $58 million in career earnings and the way he pitched in Triple-A this season, Syndergaard's career is likely over. It's clear he doesn't have the desire to grind out a season in the minor leagues, and that's his prerogative.