There’s been a great deal of positivity surrounding Jacob deGrom this spring. deGrom has been hampered by injuries over the last four years but the Texas Rangers’ ace is on track to pitch at the start of the season. deGrom made his spring training debut on Saturday and the outing was a big step in the right direction.
“Felt good. We took it a little slow this spring. But getting out there obviously is a big plus. I was able to locate pretty well… locating arm side was not great. But everything to my glove side was good, which, that’s normally where I throw the ball,” deGrom said following the start Saturday, per DLLS Rangers Weekly.
deGrom made his MLB debut with the New York Mets in 2014 and spent the first nine seasons of his career with the team. Then, in 2023, he inked a five-year, $185 million contract with the Rangers. However, after just six starts with Texas, deGrom’s season abruptly ended when he underwent Tommy John surgery.
Rangers’ ace Jacob deGrom is excited to start the season healthy
The two-time Cy Young Award winner was determined to get back on the mound in 2024 after his surgery the previous year. And he was able to make his season debut in September. He made three starts for the Rangers in 2024 and looked sharp, albeit in a very small sample size
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Now the veteran righty will begin the 2025 campaign healthy and hoping to help the Rangers get back into the playoffs. “I’m ready to be out there. Missing that much time is not fun. I’m excited to be back out there, feel really good. So hopefully keep building on that and, like I said, go out there as many times as I can,” deGrom said, via DLLS Rangers.
It’s unknown how many times deGrom will be able to go out there for Texas. He hasn’t thrown more than 92 innings in any season since 2019. He’s made just 20 starts over the last three years. But deGrom has remained very effective when healthy enough to pitch.
In his spring training debut Saturday, deGrom threw two innings and didn’t allow a hit, a walk or a run while striking out three batters. “Slider was good, Threw a couple curveballs. Fastball was good. So everything felt good. The main thing is health,” deGrom explained.
When asked about his velocity being a bit down in the outing, by his standards, deGrom was pragmatic. “I’d rather stick a 97 [mph fastball] where I want than 100 that leaks back a little bit”
