Texas Rangers Ace Jacob deGrom Making Major Change in 2025 in Order to Stay Healthy

According to a recent article from Jeff Passan of ESPN, deGrom is looking to scale back his velocity this season.

Texas Rangers pitcher Jacob deGrom (48) throws against the Los Angeles Angels during the first inning at Angel Stadium in 2024. | Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

The Texas Rangers are coming off a third-place finish in the American League West heading into 2025.

It was a disappointing 2024 season for Texas, who had won the World Series in 2023 by beating the Arizona Diamondbacks.

If the Rangers are going to contend in 2025, they'll need a big performance from ace pitcher Jacob deGrom, who missed much of the last two seasons because of a Tommy John surgery in 2023.

According to ESPN, the oft-injured deGrom is making a major change this season in an effort to stay healthy: He will try to reduce his velocity, per a story from Jeff Passan of ESPN.

"I have to look at it like, hey, I can pitch at that velocity [from 2018]," deGrom said. "It is less stress on your body. You get out there and you're throwing pitches at 100 miles an hour for however many pitches it is -- it's a lot of stress. It's something that I'm going to look into -- using it when I need it, backing off and just trusting that I can locate the ball."

Jacob deGrom had one of the best stretches for a pitcher in baseball history. He was Pedro with more velo, excellence evolved.

Today, he's undergoing a different sort of evolution -- one he believes will return him to his peak. Free and unlocked at ESPN: https://t.co/hepUD3ab0T

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) March 12, 2025

According to the article, deGrom averaged 96.0 MPH on his fastball in 2018 and then steadily climbed each successive year, even as injuries mounted.

Now 36, deGrom is an 11-year veteran of the New York Mets and Rangers. One of the best pitchers of the 2000s (when healthy), he's gone 84-57 lifetime with a 2.52 ERA. He is a two-time Cy Young winner, a four-time All-Star, a Rookie of the Year and an ERA champion. He led the National League in strikeouts in 2019 and 2020. He's made just 35 starts over the last four seasons.

The Rangers open the regular season on March 27 at home against the Boston Red Sox.

Related MLB Stories

ONE FOR THE THUMB: Max Scherzer won't start as scheduled for the Toronto Blue Jays this week because of a thumb issue. Here's what we know. CLICK HERE:

ONE HOT TICKET: Game 1 of the Tokyo Series will be the first MLB game for Shohei Ohtani in Japan, and the ticket is already pushing $2,000. CLICK HERE:

COLE OUT FOR SEASON: Gerrit Cole will undergo Tommy John surgery for the Yankees, putting a big damper on their plans to reclaim the American League in 2025. CLICK HERE:

Follow Fastball on SI on social media

Continue to follow our Fastball on SI coverage on social media by liking us on Facebook and by following us on Twitter @FastballFN.