Jacob DeGrom Shines in Mets Win over Astros
Luis Rojas tabs Jake as Mets' Opening Day starter; Dom, McCann, PCA, and Mauricio stand out in 6-1 victory
Following the time change from 6:05 PM to 1:05 PM due to expected inclement weather, New York Mets manager Luis Rojas confirmed the team had an “open mind” with regards to holding Jacob deGrom out of his scheduled Grapefruit League debut versus the Astros on Saturday.
A simulated game would have been the alternative option to keep him on track for Opening Day, which Rojas confirmed was indeed the case for his undisputed ace — and without much fanfare.
“Everybody knows [deGrom] falls into that place [as the Mets’ Opening Day starter],” Rojas said. “The rest of the pitchers here and the players look up to him, not only for his abilities on the field but for the way he carries himself.”
Despite the change in Saturday’s game time, deGrom — included in these discussions, as well as catcher James McCann, per Rojas — opted to take the ball versus actual opposing hitters when the news broke on Friday.
In quintessential Jacob deGrom fashion, the right-hander breezed through two innings of work (29 pitches) appearing to be in midseason form.
After issuing a two-out walk to Astros outfielder Kyle Tucker (future star, keep an eye out) in a 14-pitch first, deGrom sat at 99 MPH with his fastball through the second, striking out three in the frame, working around a one-out Abraham Toro double.
Following his appearance, deGrom spoke about his day, specifically regarding his strong second inning of work.
“That was fastball location, I think. I gave up the double on a slider and I was like, ‘You know what, I’m just gonna work on hitting my spot with the fastball’ because even in the first inning I was letting some sail — I think I was a little quick to the plate — so that next inning, me and [McCann] stuck to locating the fastball.”
DeGrom noted a sequence on Saturday in which McCann mentioned that “nobody’s on time with the fastball”, leading to the extra focus on location and execution in his outing.
The shift in approach appears to have worked splendidly. We spoke about McCann’s work with a few of his more prominent hurlers in Chicago this week. Could be huge.
Ahead of Saturday's game, Rojas confirmed that right-handers Marcus Stroman, Jordan Yamamoto, and Taijuan Walker would be making the team’s next three starts (Walker’s spring debut) on Sunday (1:10 PM, WPIX), Monday (no TV), and Tuesday (1:10 PM, SNY), respectively.
Lots of arms in Queens this season, friends. High times.
Game Recap
Michael Conforto got the Mets started with a two-out single in the first off Houston right-hander Zack Greinke — who dropped a couple of curveballs in at 66 MPH and 60 MPH, respectively, in his inning of work — and was driven home by Pete Alonso’s double into the gap, giving the Mets an early 1-0 lead.
James McCann led off the second with a double of his own, Kevin Pillar followed with a walk, and Albert Almora singled off Nivaldo Rodriguez, bringing McCann home to extend that lead to 2-0.
Right-hander Edwin Diaz cruised through a seven-pitch third inning in his first appearance of the spring, striking out Houston outfield prospect Bryan De La Cruz in the frame and benefitting from two nice plays via Francisco Lindor at shortstop.
Diaz told reporters he’s already thrown three live batting practice sessions this spring, adding that he’s treating spring games as regular-season games, mindset-wise.
Dominic Smith led off the fourth with his first home run of the spring, a moonshot to put New York ahead 3-0.
The Mets plated another later in the frame on a string of baserunners started by McCann’s second hit of the game, J.D. Davis reaching on an error, and a Kevin Pillar RBI single (4-for-5 this spring) to go ahead 4-0.
Mets outfield prospect Khalil Lee reached base for the first time this spring with a walk in the fifth, advanced to third on Alonso’s second double of the game, and came around to score on Dom Smith’s fielder’s choice later in the frame, making it a 5-0 game.
Pete Crow-Armstrong tripled in his lone at-bat, his first hit of the spring in his seventh plate appearance, and came home to score on Ronny Mauricio’s RBI base hit, extending the lead to 6-0 in the sixth.
Check out PCA’s big-league stroke via our good buddy, Jacob Resnick.
Miguel Castro worked around a walk in a clean fourth and Tommy Hunter — signed to a minors deal last month — navigated around a leadoff single via Robel Garcia in a scoreless fifth, striking out one.
Left-hander Mike Montgomery — also picked up as a depth piece in February — took the hill in the sixth, allowing a run on a hit
All three could end up playing pivotal roles — Castro, specifically — in the Mets bullpen this season if Dellin Betances and Jeurys Familia fail to live up to expectations.
Jeff McNeil and Lindor both went 0-for-3 on the day.
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After the Mets have their extension discussions with Lindor, Conforto, and Syndergaard, would love to see a re-working of deGrom's contract to get rid of the opt out after 2022.