New York Mets pitcher, Jacob deGrom put forth a great start in Friday night’s 6-5 thrilling walk-off win over the Los Angeles Dodgers. Jake threw seven innings of one-run ball as his wife, Stacey and his son, Jaxon, were in attendance to watch him pitch.
DeGrom, 27, allowed just three hits on the night, three walks, and struck out seven. The seven strikeouts matched a season-high for deGrom. DeGrom though got a no-decision as Jeurys Familia allowed four runs to score in the top of the ninth to tie the game. He didn’t have his best control at times, but still as usual for deGrom, he was able to put forth another quality start.
“These are the times when you’ve really got to pitch, when you feel like you don’t go out there with your best stuff,” deGrom said. “I think it really teaches you. When you have your overpowering stuff, it feels like it’s a lot easier. When you don’t, you’ve got to pitch. I can take away learning how to pitch from this.” (ESPN)
Jacob was hitting 96 MPH regularly in the early innings of the game. He ended up averaging 94 throughout the night. This was a great sign for the pitcher who has seen constant criticism regarding the drop in velocity of his fastball.
“I feel closer,” deGrom said. “There’s still some work, but this is a step in the right direction. I didn’t give up as many hard-hit balls tonight; there were a couple hit at Asdrubal [Cabrera]. But their base hits, none of those were really hit hard. So I think that’s a step in the right direction.”
He is noted to be a true pitcher, as even when he does not have his best stuff he has been able to fight through and put together a quality start. Manager, Terry Collins, echoed those thoughts as he spoke to the media after last night’s win.
“He never gives up. He doesn’t give up on his secondary pitches that maybe aren’t as sharp as he wants. He just uses them,” Collins said. “And that’s what I think separates him from a lot of pitchers in the game. The nights he doesn’t have his good stuff, he still battles. And you look up and you always seem like you’re in the sixth or seventh inning with him.”
DeGrom is 3-1 on the season with an ERA of 2.81. He has allowed one run or fewer in 27 of his first 60 career starts, third-most in franchise history behind Matt Harvey (31 such starts) and Dwight Gooden (30 such starts). Last night also saw the first error of his major league career as he misplayed a ball in the third inning. Getting deGrom trending in the right direction is crucial for this rotation and team to have continued success.
