The 2017 All-Star game rosters were announced Sunday night and Mets starter Jacob deGrom wasn’t included. He should have been. Here’s why.
After allowing eight runs against the Texas Rangers on June 6, Jacob deGrom had an ERA of 4.75. Over the past three weeks, deGrom’s recent dominance has lowered his brutal early season ERA to just 3.55, which is 13th best in the National League.
The righty has a career-best 29 percent strikeout rate and the eighth best fWAR (2.2) in the NL. Diamondbacks starter Robbie Ray, who just made the All-Star game over deGrom, had a lower fWAR (1.9) than deGrom.
The deGrominator has a stellar 8-3 record despite pitching in front of an offense that offers little support. The righty has been arguably the best pitcher in all of MLB over his past four outings, allowing just three earned runs over a 32 inning stretch.
deGrom currently sits fourth in the NL in strikeouts (125) and is tied for eighth in wins. St. Louis Cardinals ace Carlos Martinez, who was selected over deGrom, has fewer strikeouts (124) and a losing record (6-7) on the season.
MLB fans seem to forget just how dominant deGrom was in the 2015 Midsummer Classic when he struck out the side on 10 pitches. That he turned down an opportunity to play in it last year shouldn’t cost him a chance to showcase his talents this year.
With all due respect to Martinez and Ray, deGrom should have been an All-Star. He deserved it. Thanks to an antiquated system of picking rosters, however, deGrom will have to watch this year’s All-Star Game from home.