An Injury Update on Texas Rangers' Ace Jacob deGrom
The Texas Rangers lead the Houston Astros 2-0 in the ALCS, meaning they are just two wins away from a trip to the World Series.
What makes the Rangers' dominance so impressive is that they've done it without ace pitcher Jacob deGrom, who had a UCL injury earlier in the year and made just six starts.
He underwent Tommy John surgery in June.
The following update on deGrom comes from the Rotowire fantasy baseball portal:
DeGrom (elbow) has full range of motion back in his pitching arm, he told Joel Sherman of the New York Post on Tuesday.
ANALYSIS
The goal for deGrom -- who is a little over four months removed from Tommy John surgery -- is to begin a throwing program early on in the new year and progress to mound work sometime during spring training. "My arm feels pretty close to normal already," he said. DeGrom is aiming to rejoin the Rangers' rotation by next August.
There's a few ways to look at that:
1) Success is not guaranteed in baseball. Just because the Rangers are good this year, does not mean they'll be good next year. Not having deGrom until August potentially could put them behind the eight ball right away in a deeply talented American League West.
Remember, Max Scherzer is older at this point. Nathan Eovaldi has spent considerable time on the injured list the last few years, and Jordan Montgomery is a free agent. If the rotation's health goes sideways beyond deGrom - and Montgomery leaves - it could be tough for Texas to replicate success.
2) You could view it this way. The Rangers are already good without deGrom. If he comes back in August of next year, he'll be there to elevate an already very good team. He'll be the trade deadline acquisition that the Rangers don't have to make as they chase another deep playoff run.
deGrom, 34, is one of the best pitchers of his era. He's won the National League Rookie of the Year (2014), has been to the All-Star Game four times (2015, 2018-19, 2021), has won the National League Cy Young twice (2018-19) and finished in the top 10 in Cy Young voting a total of six times.
He finished at 2-0 with a 2.67 ERA this season in those six starts.
He left the Mets after nine years last offseason, signing a five-year, $185 million contract with Texas.
Game 3 of the ALCS is Wednesday night.
Follow Fastball on FanNation on social media
Continue to follow our Fastball on FanNation coverage on social media by LIKING us on Facebook and by following us on Twitter @FastballFN.
You can also subscribe to "The Payoff Pitch" podcast on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
Check out more Texas Rangers coverage at Sports Illustrated and FanNation's Inside the Rangers.
