PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- Jacob deGrom continued his Spring Training dominance in Monday's 2-1 loss to the Marlins.
In his third start, deGrom worked four shutout innings, scattering four hits while striking out five batters. He threw 59 pitches, 41 for strikes.
Facing the Marlins for the second consecutive outing, deGrom was as brilliant as he was against them last Thursday when he worked three innings of one-hit ball, striking out three. The right-hander said he feels like he is progressing as camp rolls on.
"Definitely, I'm throwing my offspeed for strikes when I want to," deGrom said. "I'm pretty pleased with how I'm throwing the ball."

It was an improvement over his initial spring start, a three-inning stint against the Yankees. In that March 9 appearance, deGrom permitted five hits, struck out two batters and yielded an earned run -- his only one during Grapefruit League play.
But deGrom's emphasis remains on working mechanics for the remainder of spring. Over 10 spring innings, deGrom has given up 10 hits. He has struck out 10 batters with one walk.
deGrom is coming off an All-Star season in which he went 14-8 with a 2.54 ERA (fourth in the National League) over 30 starts. He became the 11th player in Mets history to strike out 200 in a season (205).
"Getting everything back in line mechanics-wise," deGrom said. "I think the velocity will be there. The swings and misses tell you most. It doesn't matter what that gun says."