Julio Urías and Noah Syndergaard made their first appearances of the spring on Tuesday against the Cincinnati Reds. Both pitchers already looked to be in mid-season form.
Urías started the game and pitched a solid 2 2/3 innings while striking out four batters and only allowing two hits. Urías was charged with one run as an inherited runner came home after he had already departed the game.
Julio Urías's 2Ks in the 2nd. pic.twitter.com/wdRFWXb1jI
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) February 28, 2023
"For the first [game] it felt really good out there, felt like I was attacking the zone, attacking the strike zone, and making good pitches," Urías said after his start, via SportsNet LA.
“Felt really good out there, felt like I was attacking the zone, attacking the strike zone, and making good pitches.” Julio Urías on how it felt to be back on the mound pitching. pic.twitter.com/UBV4XLHIC3
— SportsNet LA (@SportsNetLA) February 28, 2023
Urías is expected to make one more start for the Dodgers before joining Team Mexico for the World Baseball Classic. The southpaw also said he would be ready if asked to start Mexico's first game against Colombia on March 11.
Syndergaard came into the game in the fourth inning and pitched two scoreless frames, including a 1-2-3 inning in the fourth. Syndergaard struck out two batters and only gave up one hit.
1-2-3 inning with 2 strikeouts for Noah Syndergaard in his Dodgers debut pic.twitter.com/taFA69r5HO
— Blake Harris (@BlakeHHarris) February 28, 2023
Syndergaard, who signed with the Dodgers as a reclamation project, has hoped the team can help him get back to throwing triple-digits. In his first start of the spring, his fastball sat between 91-93 MPH.
The former flamethrower admitted low 90s is not where he wanted his fastball to be, but isn't too concerned and is focused on building his arm strength up.
“I think we have the right formula down, just you know, being consistent with it and trusting the routine, trusting the process.”@Noahsyndergaard is being patient with his arm and trusts the #Dodgers staff will get him back to his normal pitching speed. pic.twitter.com/v7N5lrN4rc
— SportsNet LA (@SportsNetLA) March 1, 2023
More must-reads:
Get the latest news and rumors, customized to your favorite sports and teams. Emailed daily. Always free!