It may not be the National League Cy Young award for New York Mets Jacob deGrom but it’s a step in the right direction.
The New York Mets had one heck of a season…in a negative way. The lone bright spot in their 162 games was their starter Jacob deGrom.
On Thursday he was recognized for his strong performance this season, unanimously earning Baseball Digest’s Pitcher of the Year award.
There has been much debate over deGrom’s candidacy for the National League Cy Young award due to his win-loss record. But any smart baseball fan knows that wins and losses don’t necessarily matter. And in every other category, deGrom has been incredibly dominant.
deGrom ended the season with a 10-9 record and a stellar 1.70 ERA, the lowest of his career. deGrom also threw 217 innings and allowed only 152 hits. Perhaps most impressive are his strikeouts. He finished with 269 on the season, surpassing his previous career high by 30 strikeouts.
The 30-year-old is often overshadowed by his rotation counterpart in Noah Syndergaard but this year, it was hard to ignore just how dominant deGrom was.
Of course, he is vying for the Cy Young award and seems to have major competition in Washington Nationals’ starter Max Scherzer. Scherzer finished the season with an 18-7 record and a 2.53 ERA. Clearly, deGrom should be the clear winner here.
This is a step in the right direction for deGrom’s chances at an even bigger award. Hopefully November will bring some good news and more hardware for deGrom.
Baseball Digest also awarded Player of the Year and Relief Pitcher of the Year, honoring Boston Red Sox outfielder and likely MVP Mookie Betts and Blake Treinen respectively.
Congratulations to Jacob deGrom who brings at least one offseason highlight back to Flushing while the New York Yankees are vying for a championship.
