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New York Mets star Noah Syndergaard on Twitter compared his feud with the landlord of his $27,000-a-month Manhattan penthouse with Major League Baseball paying players their prorated salaries during the coronavirus pandemic.
The landlord, 600 Street LLC, claimed.the righty pitcher signed an eight-month lease in February for the 2,700-square-foot apartment with three bedrooms and three terraces. Syndergaard was being sued by the landlord, which didn’t return Fox News’ requests for comment, to pay the full lease term of $250,000.
“I fairly, and in good faith, offered to pay 2 months rent (over 50K) to a landlord for a place I was never going to step foot in due to a global pandemic that took a severe toll on the residents of NYC,” Syndergaard tweeted. “The landlord tries to extort me for 250K while leaking this story to the media, and I’m the bad guy? Yeah, ok. See you in court pal.”
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One Twitter user took issue with Syndergaard’s reasoning.
“Yeah the guy is a monster for wanting you to live up to a lease agreement signed by both of you,” @GunterDawg99, whose display name is Chief. “How would you react if the team suddenly said yeah nah to your contract?”
“You mean like MLB did to every Player this contract year due to the Covid pandemic? “Which the players negotiated and excepted to be paid on a pro rated basis per games played because it’s fair for both parties?” Syndergaard responded. “Like that? Did I scream BUT MY CONTRACT? No. Just shut up Chief.”
MLB told players their prorated salaries would contribute to an average loss of $640,000 for each game over an 82-game season in empty ballparks, according to a presentation from the commissioner’s office to the union that was obtained by The Associated Press.
Painting a picture of a $10 billion industry shuttered by the contagion, the 12-page document titled “Economics of Playing Without Fans in Attendance” and dated May 12 was an initial step in negotiations aimed at starting the delayed season around the Fourth of July.
Officials last week said a set of protocols addressed: protections for high-risk players, access to pre- and postgame therapies, testing frequency, protocols for positive tests, in-stadium medical personnel and sanitization procedures.
Teams say the proposed method of salvaging a season delayed by the coronavirus pandemic would still cause a $4 billion loss and would give major league players 89 percent of revenue.
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Syndergaard, after tearing the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow, has been recovering in Florida from Tommy John surgery in March.
Syndergaard, who had a March 20 move-in date, “treated the binding Lease like an option,” the landlord’s federal lawsuit claimed. He “decided not to take possession of the Leased premises, Syndergaard repudiated and abandoned his obligations under the Lease, refusing to take possession of the Leased Premises, and declining to make any of the required payments.”
The landlord notified Syndergaard on April 17 of the defaulted lease; Syndergaard and his legal team told the landlord on April 30 that he “has no intention of taking possession of that subject premises and the landlord is hereby free to re-rent it as he sees fit,” according to the suit.
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The hurler, nicknamed Thor, has been among the top pitchers in the Mets’ starting rotation and in baseball. Last season, Syndergaard was 10-8 with a 4.28 ERA with 202 strikeouts and a 9.2 SO/9 ratio.
Syndergaard, 27, signed a one-year, $9.7 million contract with the Mets in arbitration prior to the 2020 season.