Jacob deGrom led the New York Mets to a 5-2 victory over the Atlanta Braves on Sunday at Citi Field.
DeGrom pitched at home for the first time in 13 months, yet he singled in his first 17 shots. From 17, 12 were on a strikeout before he began outscoring Esplalo Adrianza with two outs in the sixth. His run for two outs in the sixth inning allowed Dansby Swanson a two-run home run. Nevertheless, with deGrom back on the field, The New York Mets won over Atlanta Braves 5-2 for their 12th victory in 14 games.
“I just feel bad for whoever has to face him,” Mets outfielder Brandon Nimmo said after the game.
“He’s throwing 101, 102 [mph] out there, and he’s locating everything. Hats off to him for getting healthy and getting back to us. He’s primed and ready to go.”
“He was really good. I’m like, good God, there’s nothing wrong with him,” team manager Brian Snitker said.
He suffered right forearm tightness, which was later followed by a sprained elbow, causing him to miss the final three months of last season and skip a full calendar year.
As soon as he got back, deGrom successfully recorded the most strikeouts in a player’s first 200 games in MLB history. Finishing with 19 strikeouts, deGrom recorded the most K’s in a game since 1991.
HISTORY 👏
Jacob deGrom has the most ever strikeouts (1,521) by a pitcher in their first 200 MLB games. pic.twitter.com/DJhLwwyJnE
— ESPN (@espn) August 7, 2022
“That was fun. (deGrom) was at the top of his game,” said Mets manager, Buck Showalter.
DeGrom said he was not happy when Dansby took his chance.
“I was very frustrated walking the nine-hole hitter and then leaving a pitch over the middle of the place and letting Dansby get it,” he said.
By winning four of five games in the series, the Mets erased the chance for the Braves to win a fifth straight NL East title.
After the loss, the Braves expressed their eagerness to have a rematch with the Mets.
“I think I speak for all of us when I say we want to play them again,” says Braves starting pitcher Spencer Strider.
“We’ve got seven more games against them, all at Truist. We’ll have them down there next week. We’ll run it back and see what happens.”
DeGrom shows dominance
🎥 Jacob deGrom on his dominant start: pic.twitter.com/O5uLHMBH8q
— Anthony DiComo (@AnthonyDiComo) August 7, 2022
DeGrom dominated the game as if he had never sustained the injury. After the win, he opened up about his journey to recovery.
“Throughout this whole time, the process has been very slow, and I was trying not to do much, but I felt good the whole time,” he said.
“I think I was able to take a step back and take a look at where I was mechanically… Try to put me in a better position to stay healthy.”
DeGrom was cheered by fans when he entered the mound and received a round of applause when he left.
“Stepping out there was a little bit emotional,” he said. “I mean, big ovation, kind of took a second, took it all in, and then tried to focus and tried to take care of business.”
DeGrom’s return came ahead of the World Series. The last time the Mets played in the championship was in 2015. Their latest win was in 1986.