Mets' deGrom lowers ERA to 1.71 with complete-game gem
Jacob deGrom is building one of the strongest Cy Young resumes in recent memory.
The New York Mets right-hander hurled a complete-game gem to shut down the Philadelphia Phillies, allowing only one unearned run. Over nine innings, deGrom allowed seven hits while striking out nine, lowering his already-sterling 1.81 ERA to 1.71. To cap it off, deGrom threw his hardest fastball of the season on his 108th and final pitch of the game:
With a complete game on the line, @JdeGrom19 reached back for something extra.
— #Statcast (@statcast) August 19, 2018
The @Mets ace finished off the Phillies with a 99.1 mph fastball -- tied for his fastest pitch of the year. 🔥 pic.twitter.com/7CJLon0dWL
For deGrom, Saturday's victory pushed him to 8-7 on the season, the first time the ace has been above .500 in over one month. After going 4-0 to begin the 2018 season, deGrom dropped to 5-7 through 22 starts despite holding opponents to a .205 batting average over that span.
If the season were to end now, deGrom's 1.71 ERA would become the second-lowest mark of the past two decades, trailing Zack Greinke's 1.66 ERA in 2015.
Among qualified starters, deGrom ranks at or near the top of every major category:
| Statistic | deGrom | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| ERA | 1.71 | 1st |
| FIP | 2.08 | 2nd |
| WHIP | 0.96 | 5th |
| WAR | 6.2 | 1st |
(WAR courtesy: FanGraphs)
The 30-year-old also eclipsed the 200-strikeout mark for the third time in his career, becoming the fourth Mets pitcher to do so, per Anthony DiComo of MLB.com. DeGrom joins Tom Seaver, who accomplished the feat nine times, Dwight Gooden, who did it four times, and David Cone, who did it three times.
DeGrom has never won a Cy Young award, pitching in the same league as Clayton Kershaw and Max Scherzer. Surprisingly, deGrom has never finished higher than seventh in voting, which he did back in 2015, the season after he won National League rookie of the year.