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Two-time Cy Young winner Jacob deGrom agreed to a five-year, $185 million contract with the Texas Rangers.
The 34-year-old deGrom, who has spent all nine seasons of his major league career with the New York Mets, opted out of the final two years of his contract despite throwing just 64⅓ innings in 2022. He missed the first four months of the season with a stress reaction in his shoulder, and injuries had limited him to 224⅓ innings over the past three seasons.
DeGrom finished the 2022 season with a 5-4 record and 3.08 ERA in 11 starts, though his peripherals better illustrated his dominance: 102 strikeouts against just eight walks, with nine home runs allowed.
By the end of his first season, when he posted a 2.69 ERA over 140⅓ innings, expectations grew. DeGrom made the National League All-Star team in his second season and received Cy Young votes in his fourth year before breaking out as a 30-year-old in 2018. Over 217 innings, deGrom struck out 269 hitters, walked 46, allowed only 10 home runs and posted a 1.70 ERA en route to his first Cy Young.
He made it back-to-back awards with a 2.43 ERA over 204 innings with 255 strikeouts in 2019. That spring, he had signed a five-year contract extension that included an opt-out after the 2022 season.
After throwing 68 innings in the COVID-shortened 2020 season, deGrom looked at his peak in 2021, posting a 1.08 ERA in 15 starts, with 146 strikeouts and 11 walks in 92 innings. But he missed more than half the season with arm issues and the first half of the 2022 season, leading some to wonder whether he would forgo the final two years of his deal.
The 34-year-old deGrom, who has spent all nine seasons of his major league career with the New York Mets, opted out of the final two years of his contract despite throwing just 64⅓ innings in 2022. He missed the first four months of the season with a stress reaction in his shoulder, and injuries had limited him to 224⅓ innings over the past three seasons.
DeGrom finished the 2022 season with a 5-4 record and 3.08 ERA in 11 starts, though his peripherals better illustrated his dominance: 102 strikeouts against just eight walks, with nine home runs allowed.
By the end of his first season, when he posted a 2.69 ERA over 140⅓ innings, expectations grew. DeGrom made the National League All-Star team in his second season and received Cy Young votes in his fourth year before breaking out as a 30-year-old in 2018. Over 217 innings, deGrom struck out 269 hitters, walked 46, allowed only 10 home runs and posted a 1.70 ERA en route to his first Cy Young.
He made it back-to-back awards with a 2.43 ERA over 204 innings with 255 strikeouts in 2019. That spring, he had signed a five-year contract extension that included an opt-out after the 2022 season.
After throwing 68 innings in the COVID-shortened 2020 season, deGrom looked at his peak in 2021, posting a 1.08 ERA in 15 starts, with 146 strikeouts and 11 walks in 92 innings. But he missed more than half the season with arm issues and the first half of the 2022 season, leading some to wonder whether he would forgo the final two years of his deal.