The Province from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada • 30

A30 I SPORTS I THEPROVINCE.COM VANCOUVER CANADIANS MONDAY, AUGUST 15, 2011 rn tm pitcher: At 19, Noah Syndergaard is only scratching the surface of his future potential "I The only thing Noah Syndergaard does on the mound right now that's sneaky is peek. The Vancouver Canadians righthander, who often appears to have a three-pitch repertoire of hard, harder and hardest, admits that he sometimes steals a glimpse at the speed gun readings most stadiums have now along their outfield walls or in their stands. Don't judge. He's hit 98 miles per hour. He doesn't turn 19 until later this month.

He's yet to find a walkout song that he likes since coming to Vancouver a couple of weeks ago, but may we suggest the Golden Earring classic "Radar Love." The overall theme doesn't fit, but the title and tempo are certainly in line. "When I was in Bluefield," Syndergaard said; pointing to the Rookie League team in West Virginia that he spent his first seven appearances of the season before being promoted to Vancouver, "they had a radar gun in the stands behind home plate and I often caught myself looking up there. My eyes drifted." Part of what the 6-foot-5, 200 pounder is looking for, of course, is the time that he hits triple digits. Very few pitchers in major league history have touched 100 miles per hour with their fastballs. It's not a stretch to think that Syndergaard could do it in the Northwest League before the Short-Season Single A circuit wraps up in September.

"It would be awesome," Syndergaard said. "It is something I'm trying to do." Syndergaard got this quick in short order. His fastball was averaging about 88-89 m.p.h. when he started his senior high school season last year in Mansfield, Texas, according to Allen Davis, a former minor league pitcher who has become a mentor to Syndergaard back home. That was enough to have most scouts cut down on their trips to see him, but the Toronto Blue Jays saw something more.

Representatives for the C's parent club were there frequendy, and they were still 1 Steve Ewen VANCOUVER CANADIANS around when his fastball was averaging 94-95 m.p.h. and hitting as high as 97 just before the draft. Toronto nabbed him with the 2010 38th pick overall, as part of the sandwich round, a series of selections between the first and second rounds used as compensation for teams losing free agents. "The potential was there," said Davis, 35, a left-hander who lasted nine seasons in the minors, including two in the Montreal Expos system. "A lot of people questioned it, but the Blue Jays saw it.

"One thing that's different with Noah than a lot of the guys I played with is that he's got that arm angle, that downhill angle. He stays tall. With him, the ball is coming from like seven feet, six inches and it's ending up a foot off the ground. With that angle and that velocity, there's a deception there and it's hard to stay with." The scary part of it all is that it feels like he's just touching what he could be. His first start in Vancouver, back on Aug.

3, he gave up five stolen bases in five innings, which isn't exactly easy to do when he allowed just four hits and one walk that game. He doesn't really have a curveball or a change-up. He's never had to. Consider all mat and then consider that in his first 15 games in pro ball over two years, including three starts with Vancouver, he was 5-3, with a 2.01 ERA. He had allowed just 49 hits in 58V3 innings, while striking out 57 and walking 18.

It's enough to keep an eye on him, I (fry' r-v I Air t. 1' fti i i per hour with his pitches, courtesy Vancouver Canadians Noah Syndergaard has hit 98 miles and not a sporadic one like he does with the radar gun readings. "I just have to keep doing what I've been doing," said Synder- gaard, who reportedly landed a $600,000 signing bonus from Toronto last year. "I need to repeat my delivery again and again, every time out. I need to work hard in the "I'd like to be in the majors in three years, but as long as I'm pro-; gressing and getting better, I'll be OK." sewentheprovince.com.