New York Mets: Jacob deGrom’s case for the NL Cy Young Award
By David Burton
In Monday night’s New York Mets win, Jacob deGrom battled through 6 ⅔ innings, allowing 3 R (2 ER) on 5 hits with 2 walks. deGrom also struck out 12 batters in the game further making his case to be the NL Cy Young.
While also being the victim of some poor defense and untimely bloop hits, Jacob deGrom pitched great.
Without some of his best stuff, deGrom worked in and out of trouble, something he has been accustomed to doing so well.
With two out in the bottom of the 7th inning, deGrom departed with a league leading 1.81 ERA and a standing ovation from the Yankee Stadium crowd.
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It is a rare occasion for a pitcher to turn in a start like deGrom did on Monday night and not have it feel like it was a dominating performance.
The Mets’ ace struck out 12 batters, yet raised his ERA for the season. That sums up the kind of year it has been for deGrom, who has earned his way to be the leading Cy Young candidate as we head into the final stretch of the season.
Jacob deGrom’s biggest Cy Young ballot rival is a familiar face, as division rival Max Scherzer is turning in an another unbelievable season.
However, as good as Scherzer has been, it should be deGrom who is rewarded at the season’s end for his outstanding performance on the mound.
Let’s give you a few solid reasons why:
(Pitcher’s) Wins Mean Nothing
To start, the obvious lopsided statistic between the two candidates is their win-loss record. Scherzer boasts a league leading 15 wins to accompany only five losses, while deGrom owns a measly 7-7 record.
When it comes to a pitcher’s performance, this statistic is peripheral. While it looks attractive in the box score, the designation of a “win” for a pitcher is determined mostly by factors outside of his control.
Unfortunately for deGrom, pretty much every outside factor has worked against his favor. Historically poor run support, dreadful defensive play and a lackluster bullpen have skewed deGrom’s win/loss record against him.
Even with deGrom’s win/loss record so mediocre, he has done nothing but give his team a chance to win.
In the 159 innings that Jacob deGrom has been the pitcher of record for this season, the Mets have been trailing in only 25 innings.
Of those 159, the Mets have trailed by more than one run in only two of those innings, and they have never trailed by more than three runs according to all these numbers according Tim Britton of The Athletic(subscription required).
In other words, every single time Jacob deGrom has took the mound, the Mets have had a legitimate chance to win the game.
deGrom’s run allowance has been unearthly this season. Per Baseball Reference, deGrom’s ERA+ (adjusted ERA based on pitcher’s home ballpark) was 212 entering Monday nights game, which leads the National League by a large margin.
In fact, that number would place him in the top 30 of best ERA+ in a single season in the history of Major League Baseball.
While deGrom has allowed more hits than Scherzer, he has been better at preventing runners to score. His pitching record fails to show how he has kept his team in every game by allowing the fewest runs in the league.
As a result, deGrom leads the MLB in WAR (wins above replacement) with a FanGraphs rating of 6.2. Scherzer is 4th in the majors at 5.5, nearly a full point value behind deGrom.