Jacob deGrom Keeps Texas Rangers Waiting, Hoping After Latest Injury Delay
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The alarm bells were rightly sounding when the Texas Rangers transferred Jacob deGrom to the 60-day disabled list.
Fans and pundits wonder if his season – or career – is on the brink. Remember, deGrom hasn’t pitched a full season’s complement of starts since 2019 for the New York Mets.
He was out after the All-Star break in 2021 with right elbow inflammation. He’s on the IL now with right elbow inflammation.
The Rangers invested $185 million over five years this offseason for deGrom to be a franchise anchor and ace of the staff. He’s pitched just a tad over 30 innings in 2023.
“Jacob is going to pitch for the Texas Rangers, I’m very confident in that,” Rangers general manager Chris Young said, according to MLB.com. “I can’t tell you the timing, but I know the player, the work ethic, the commitment to being out there, so I’m very confident.
“He wants to be out there. You want to push to be out there, but you don’t want to push at the risk of making things worse. The only person who truly knows is Jacob and how he’s feeling, and he’s great at communicating with us. We know he feels this responsibility to the organization, to his teammates and to the fans."
Still, the mystery timetable has been pushed back to the end of June at the earliest. That means deGrom, out since April 28, will miss at least two months or roughly one-third of his debut campaign in Texas.
The Mets and their fans know this dance.
More tests are coming. At some point, deGrom needs to move from bullpen sessions to facing live hitters to some sort of game-like action. He threw breaking pitches in his last bullpen on May 26, but understandably didn’t throw while in Florida over the weekend for the birth of his third child.
The Rangers, of course, have weathered the storm better than anyone could have predicted. Sitting in first place in the American League West with deGrom going out every five days would have been a surprise. Doing it without the two-time Cy Young Award winner for more than a month is mind-boggling.
But for all the feel-good vibes provided by Nathan Eovaldi, Martín Pérez, Andrew Heaney, Jon Gray and deGrom fill-in Dane Dunning, not having the highest-paid pitcher in franchise history out there consistently is a definite downer.
“The goal is to go out there and make 30-plus stars every year,” deGrom said in December after signing the record deal.
Not gonna happen.
No question deGrom has looked every part the ace when on the mound. He sports a 2.67 ERA and 45 strikeouts in 30 1/3 innings. The Rangers haven’t lost in his six starts.
So, the Rangers are playing the long game, being cautious and optimistic. Really, what else can they do?
They, along with the fans, can wait.
And wait.
And hope.
“I believe he’s the best in the world when he’s pitching,” Young said. “I can’t describe it – it’s just captivating when he’s on the mound. It’s special. I hate that for our fans that he’s not out there right now. The decision to bring him here was a five-year decision, and we’re taking that into consideration in terms of our proceedings here. But when he’s out there, there’s nobody better.”
When he’s out there.
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