Noah Syndergaard has another subpar start in less-than-dominant season as Mets fall to Cubs

CHICAGO — At face value, the numbers suggest a reasonably successful season: 3.51 ERA, 1.28 WHIP, almost six innings per start.

But when you are a perennial preseason pick for the Cy Young Award, have about as much velocity and stuff as any starter in baseball, and are nicknamed after a superhero with a physique and hairstyle to match, mere effectiveness underwhelms.

That is life for Noah Syndergaard in 2018. Dominance is the expectation, but not the reality. In the Mets’ 7-4 loss to the Cubs on Monday, he allowed four runs in six innings, worsening some of his career-worst numbers and underscoring his pedestrian season. Syndergaard walked three, struck out six and gave up nine hits.

“I just kind of feel like every five days … I'm just kind of wasting my ability to throw a baseball,” Syndergaard said. “My stuff's too good to go out there and go six innings and give up four runs with nine base hits. It doesn't make a whole lot of sense.”

Syndergaard this season has the worst ERA, WHIP, strikeout rate (24.6 percent) and opponents’ batting average (.260) of his career. He is issuing twice as many walks and eliciting fewer ground balls than he did in his injury-abbreviated 2017.

The pessimistic view of Syndergaard’s career is that this is already his fourth major-league season, he has not progressed like many expected and he might be injury prone. The optimistic view is that he turns only 26 on Wednesday, already has four major-league seasons of experience and still has all of the tools that made him one of the top prospects in all of baseball.

“There’s more in there,” manager Mickey Callaway said. “[If] he can concentrate on some of the little things we’ve been talking about more, it will lead to a lot better run prevention.”

Among those little things that have loomed large for Syndergaard: controlling the running game and using all of the strike zone (as opposed to focusing on the bottom half). He sort of did the former Monday, allowing a stolen base to Daniel Murphy but picking off Javier Baez. Callaway said Syndergaard has not been working on the latter, noting “that’s going to have to come a little bit later.”

On Monday, Syndergaard allowed hits to the first four Chicago batters (two doubles), but limited the damage to a lone run. In the third, the Mets intentionally walked Kyle Schwarber with two outs to load the bases for lefthander Jon Lester (six innings, three runs). Lester laced a two-run single to left-center.

Syndergaard has a 4.74 ERA and 1.34 WHIP in six starts this month.

“He’s had some injuries in his past,” Callaway said. “He hasn’t been able to get out there consistently for 20, 30 starts in a row. That always affects your routine.”

Said Syndergaard: “We're past the point where I can make excuses of being on the disabled list and being sidelined.”

Michael Conforto blasted a 472-foot home run, the Mets’ longest in at least four seasons. Amed Rosario (run, RBI, steal) had another multihit night, but struck out with the bases loaded in the ninth. The Cubs took the lead for good with a pair of runs in the seventh against Jerry Blevins, the first he had given up since July 15.

After the loss, Syndergaard was left lamenting his day — and his year.

“Disappointing,” Syndergaard said. “Just not really where I want to be right now.”