Texas Rangers Ace Jacob deGrom Honored to Start Opening Day
There’s no question Jacob deGrom signing with the Texas Rangers served as a changing of the guard. There’s a new ace in town.
Now it’s time to show it for real.
The two-time Cy Young winner wrapped up an eventful Spring Training with a strong outing Saturday, even though the Rangers lost 5-3 to the San Diego Padres. The next turn on the hill for deGrom is Opening Day on Thursday against the Philadelphia Phillies at Globe Life Field.
“It’s a huge honor, and I couldn’t be more happy to do it,” deGrom said Saturday, according to MLB.com. “I’m excited. It’s getting us kicked off and hopefully puts us in a good spot. That’s the goal.”
The Rangers and their fans are counting on being in a good spot again. Texas has suffered through six consecutive losing seasons, with much of their struggles due to pitching. There have been quality arms in Arlington, just not the consistency.
The Rangers have used 14 different Opening Day starters since 2010. Kevin Millwood was the last Texas pitcher to start consecutive Opening Days, doing so from 2006-09.
The hope is deGrom, beginning a five-year contract for $185 million, can start a new streak. He did start Opening Day three times for the New York Mets (2019-21).
“You want to set the tone for the season and get things going,” he said. “It does feel different even though you try not to make it feel different. You want to go out there like I said, set the tone and have success.”
The final spring start was encouraging, with deGrom not allowing a run in 3 2/3 innings. He struck out six, walked two and allowed two hits. His fastball once again hit 100 mph.
“I felt really good,” deGrom said. “I had a couple walks, I didn’t really like that, but other than that, I threw all four pitches and felt like I located them pretty well. There were a couple of pitches close there, but the ball was coming out good.”
Due to an abbreviated spring that included being shut down early for left side tightness, deGrom made only two MLB starts in Cactus League play. He will open the season on a pitch count, though the final appearance in Arizona signaled he’s on the right path.
“It felt like mechanics were good,” deGrom said. “And we got up to 50-something pitches, so hopefully that puts me at 70-something for Opening Day.”
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