New York Mets: How Jacob deGrom’s 2019 season will go based recent NL Cy Young winners

Will Jacob deGrominate 2019?

Based on the last four seasons of the reigning Cy Young winners, yes Jacob deGrom could be in for a huge 2019. He could have a slight fall-off in terms on numbers and still be the Cy Young, but it is not that simple.

While I wouldn’t entirely rule out deGrom winning around 15 games, having a sub 2.50 ERA, and over 200 strikeouts again, nothing is given.

The last Mets’ Cy Young winner, R.A. Dickey, followed up his Cy Young season, on a different team in a different leauge, by having six less wins, seven more losses, 53 less strike outs, and an almost doubled ERA.

However, he was a knuckleballer, knuckleballers are sporadic and there is no way of knowing how they will go. Dickey is more the exception of an NL Cy Young winner following up with a terrible season the next rather than the rule. Much like Tim Wakefield being a knuckleballer with a long sustainable career is also more the exception rather than the rule.

Even before Dickey, and this is just for fun now, Kershaw followed up his 2011 Cy Young with nearly a just-as-impressive 2012. Roy Halladay the same in 2011, and Tim Lincecum the same in 2010.

There is no evidence that deGrom should just have a fall from grace. Not that anyone thinks he will. I am just saying. I know it seems like the Mets can’t have nice things and deGrom is a nice thing, but all signs point to him being more of a Kershaw and less of a Dickey.

Even with a changing game, and the endless dilemma that is forever changing circumstances, the four-year sample size I provided, and even a few of the seasons beyond that are more than enough to feel safe about deGrom being a power house again.

Nothing, not even the Mets and their forever consistent ill-fate, can get in the way of history repeating itself. Jacob deGrom should be just as impactful in 2019 as he was in 2018. The numbers don’t care about narratives, they are the narrative.