'He's been outstanding': deGrom closes short season on a high note

ANAHEIM -- Jacob deGrom wanted to pitch all season long. Even as the Rangers’ postseason hopes slowly slipped away throughout the summer, their ace was working relentlessly to get back on the mound after he was sidelined for over a year due to Tommy John surgery.

On Friday night at Angel Stadium, deGrom made his third and final start of 2024, teeing up the Rangers for a 5-2 victory over the Angels to kick off the final series of the year.

“That was the goal, to get back out there and pitch in a Major League Baseball game,” deGrom said. “We were able to do that, and felt like my stuff played well. The first couple [of starts], I didn't feel as in sync as I would liked to, but today felt like I was able to locate and make adjustments. … I felt like this was the best one.”

deGrom tossed four innings against the Angels, allowing one run in the first inning, walking nobody and striking out five. His fastball velocity sat around 97.1 mph, topping out at 98.7.

“When you mention Jacob deGrom’s name, it’s something special,” said Angels manager Ron Washington. “Even if he’s half of what he is, he’s better than most guys at 100 percent. He’s a competitor when he takes that mound.”

Manager Bruce Bochy said pregame that deGrom would go about 75 pitches or five innings. He never came out for the fifth, despite ending with just 53 pitches. That marks the fewest he’s thrown in any of his post-surgery starts in the big leagues, but it was the longest innings wise.

Bochy and deGrom both said that it was decided in the dugout during the game that he had gone far enough and to finish his season on a high note. deGrom was fine with it, noting that this is the closest he’s felt to getting his “feel” back since the surgery.

“There's times in my windup or out of the stretch that I still feel that I have to think about a lot of things, versus like, ‘Hey, there's the glove, hit it,’” deGrom said. “That's what this offseason will be for, locking that in by Spring Training and getting everything where that needs to be.

“Like I said, the goal was to get out there and make a few starts. We were able to do that. Everything felt good and I felt like stuff was getting better each time. That was the goal, and we were able to accomplish that. That's the last one for me this year, and I’m going into the offseason feeling good about it, and get ready for next year.”

deGrom now finishes his abbreviated campaign having allowed two earned runs in 10 2/3 innings across three starts. He struck out 14 batters and walked one. Though his return came when the Rangers were all but officially eliminated from postseason contention, it was important for him to be back on the mound this year and go into the offseason healthy.

deGrom said he and the Rangers will have discussions over the next few days about how to best approach the offseason, but he feels it’ll be as close to normal as he’s had in years.

“He’s been outstanding,” Bochy said. “He’s throwing 98-99 [mph] with good command. It's just getting better with the command. The slider is getting there. It has always been there for him, he’s just getting some reps. For him to get out there, I think it was probably more important for him than for us. As he goes into the offseason, he knows he's healthy, he's good to go. He's got his stuff back, and he's pitching. He's throwing the ball the same way he did before the injury.”

In these 10-plus innings, deGrom has simply shown what everybody knows already. When healthy, he is one of the best pitchers in the world. Bochy said deGrom has “checked off every box,” and will only continue to get stronger and better by Opening Day 2025.

Now the goal is to have a normal, healthy offseason and enter next season firing on all cylinders.

“He’s got great stuff,” Bochy said. “We know how good this guy can be, and the command he has. He’s one of the best pitchers in the game. At his age, he’s still throwing the ball the way he is. He shows you what he can do when he's healthy. That's what's exciting for us.”