DE MAN’S MILESTONE
Healthy outlook: Jacob hits 200 IP
JACOB deGrom has been the last ace standing for the Mets for most of this season, pitching more innings than Noah Syndergaard, Matt Harvey and Steven Matz have thrown combined.
Coming off of season-ending elbow surgery a year ago, it is of no small significance that deGrom reached the 200-inning plateau for the first time in his major-league career on Sunday. DeGrom tossed another six strong frames, despite suffering the defeat to Washington ace Max Scherzer in a 3-2 loss to the Nationals at Citi Field. “It’s definitely big for me,” deGrom said of his innings total. “We’ve got plans to hopefully go to the World Series next year, and I think that’s something I wanted to get to, to know what it’s like to pitch that many innings in a year.
“You never know what to expect coming off of surgery, so being healthy this year definitely has been a big plus for me.”
DeGrom gave up a two-run homer to Trea Turner in the third inning and an unearned run in the fifth, but he finished the game with 11 strikeouts, his 11th doubledigit outing of the season.
The 2015 NL All-Star is 15-10 with a 3.53 ERA over a career-high 201.1 innings with one start remaining. “Certainly, with the breakdown of the pitching staff, he’s turned into the ace,” Terry Collins said. “He became the guy to turn to when things were tough. When we lost a few in a row, you’re always looking to see where he’s going to pitch again, because you knew that this guy takes it and he competes and he stops losing streaks. That’s what he’s done.
“When you look up and he’s got 15 wins, on a club that’s been decimated like we have, it’s about being a competitive guy. That’s exactly what he did, and he did it again today.”
Of course, Harvey, Matz and Syndergaard have combined to throw 183.2 innings this season due to injuries.
In fact, the remainder of the Mets’ pitching staff other than deGrom has combined for a 51-79 record and a 5.29 ERA. “You see the big guys, 200 (innings)…I think that becomes a number that those guys get used to, a standard they live by,” Collins said. “(Clayton)
Nats right fielder Victor Robles made a leaping catch and crashed into the wall to rob Reyes in the first inning. Kershaw, Scherzer, those kind of guys, they live by 200 innings.
“I think you’re going to look up in a few years and that’s going to be Jake deGrom’s motif. You know you’re going to get 200-plus out of him, and they’re going to be quality innings.”