It can be hard to compare the relative strengths of competing mythologies, but on this week's episode of HBO's "Game of Thrones," it appeared that a Norse god could hold his own against a horde of Dothraki warriors but was no match for a full-grown dragon.
New York Mets fans could be forgiven if they blinked and missed it, but in the raucous battle between the armies of Danaerys Targaryen and Cersei Lannister, the Lannisters got a brief assist from Noah Syndergaard, the Mets pitcher affectionately known by fans as Thor. Syndergaard used his towering height and strong right arm to toss a long spear over a row of shields, hitting a horse square in the chest and stopping one of Dothraki riders in his tracks.
A helmet obscured Syndergaard's flowing blond locks — a trait that would make him fit in well with the Lannister family — but his face was recognizable if you knew to look for it. And when you consider that Syndergaard is one of the hardest throwers in baseball, it was no surprise that he excelled at his role.
Syndergaard's scenes were filmed in Spain, and he told Sports Illustrated in April that he brought his parents with him for his day on set since they had actually been the ones who convinced him to start watching the show.
"I think it's the greatest TV show of all time, so just to be able to say I was in 'Game of Thrones' is an unbelievable feeling," he said at the time.
Syndergaard has not pitched in the majors since April 30 because of an injury widely attributed to the lingering effects of his offseason workout regimen, and he has yet to start throwing off a mound in his rehabilitation program. Unfortunately for his small-screen version, there will be no rehab program: By the end of the episode he, along with most of the Lannister army, had been burned to a crisp by the fire of the Targaryen dragon.
NEW YORK TIMES
