New York Mets’ pitching ace Jacob deGrom has been renowned for the lack of run support he’s received for excellent pitching performances over the past few years, which even saw pushback from old-guard sportswriters like Michael “I value winning the damn game more than the ERA!” Wilbon after deGrom won the NL Cy Young in 2018. Well, on Friday, deGrom (seen after the game with catcher Tomas Nido) didn’t need much run support, or even much fielding support. He pitched nine shutout innings, allowing just two hits, and he recorded 15 strikeouts, a career-high. And he actually got some run support, with the Mets posting a 6-0 win. Here’s deGrom’s 15th strikeout of the night:
🚨 NEW CAREER-HIGH 🚨
Jacob deGrom has set a new career best with 15 strikeouts. pic.twitter.com/n5qcsoA2HW
— New York Mets (@Mets) April 24, 2021
deGrom also got a standing ovation when he came to the plate in the ninth inning, and he promptly proceeded to hit a single, his second hit of the night:
A well-deserved standing ovation for Jacob deGrom as he steps the the plate in the 9th.
He gets a single.
Cherish these moments you get to watch Jacob deGrom, folks. pic.twitter.com/Y2DheFibxf
— SNY (@SNYtv) April 24, 2021
Here’s his final line:
deGrom allowed 2 hits.
deGrom had 2 hits.
What a performance. 👏 pic.twitter.com/sHYgGhjDLr
— MLB (@MLB) April 24, 2021
Interestingly enough, that specific line has been seen before in MLB history, but only a few times:
are you ready for a wonderful list? here is a wonderful list
this exact pitching line:
9 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 15 K
has happened 4 times in MLB history
Van Lingle Mungo on September 29, 1935
Pedro Martínez on May 12, 2000
Erik Bedard on July 7, 2007
Jacob deGrom tonight— Céspedes Family BBQ (@CespedesBBQ) April 24, 2021
And what’s really remarkable is how this relates to the season deGrom has had to date, and how it gives him an all-time MLB record:
Jacob deGrom through four starts this season:
29.0 IP, 13 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 50 K
ERA: 0.31
Good Lord.
— Steve Gelbs (@SteveGelbs) April 24, 2021
Fifty strikeouts for Jacob deGrom over his first four starts of the season. That's a Major League record.
Fifty. What an insane number to comprehend. No wonder no one has ever done it before.
— Anthony DiComo (@AnthonyDiComo) April 24, 2021
This has been quite the incredible season for deGrom so far. We’ll see where he goes from here.
[@Mets on Twitter]