ST. LOUIS -- Plenty of people in the Rangers’ clubhouse understood the importance of Jacob deGrom sitting on 99 career victories, especially given that he’d had three cracks at cracking the century mark without breaking through. deGrom was appreciative of the milestone and was lightly contemplative of what it meant to his career, but he was certain he would remember it for a much simpler reason.
“Today [is] Nolan’s third birthday,” the proud father and game victor said of his youngest son. “I’ll always remember that, getting my 100th win on his third birthday. It’s really cool.”
The two-time Cy Young Award winner struck out eight and allowed just one walk in the Rangers’ 2-1 victory over the Cardinals. On a night where offense was at a premium for both sides, deGrom successfully danced through the raindrops in the game’s early going. He stranded runners in scoring position in the first, second and fourth innings, and despite the traffic, he allowed only one extra-base hit.
“He’s been so dominant throughout his career,” manager Skip Schumaker said. “It’s so nice to be and so fun to be a part of his 100th win. I know the boys were excited in [the clubhouse]. They had a little celebration already for him.”
That celebration hewed to tradition, with deGrom only barely reluctantly lowering himself into a laundry cart for a celebratory spin in a beer shower. Catcher Danny Jansen -- who handled deGrom behind the plate, stole the second base of his nine-year career and ultimately scored the game-winning run -- was quick to point out that the Rangers made sure to help deGrom’s 6-foot-4-inch frame out of the tiny cart in an attempt to avoid any mishaps.
deGrom, who has been plagued by injuries throughout his 13-year career, became the 16th active pitcher to reach the 100-win milestone.
“He’s a legendary guy,” Jansen said. “Outstanding human as well and a hard worker. The guy cares, he’s super talented, and it’s a lot of fun to be able to work with him. It’s a really cool thing.”
deGrom has been so dominant over the course of his career that it’s difficult to imagine any particular ballpark might have given him trouble. Heading into Monday’s start, though, he held a 8.44 ERA in three starts at Busch Stadium, his highest mark at any park where he’d made more than one appearance. Five scoreless innings moved the ballpark one notch down that list, now residing behind Angel Stadium (7.79 ERA in four starts).
“I was trying not to do too much tonight,” deGrom said. “Going in, having the meeting, talking to Danny, I was like, ‘Hey, tonight we’re hitting the glove as many times as we can.’ Mechanics are what they are. We’re throwing everything else out the window. We’re going back like how I used to pitch. There’s the target. Once the ball leaves my hand, it’s out of my control.”
“Fastball command tonight was awesome,” assessed Jansen. “Went in to some guys and found a nice line in there. Went away, got down. I know it’s been a big focus for him, and that’s the Jacob deGrom fastball command that helps everything out.”
Ezequiel Duran paced the Rangers’ offense with three hits, including an RBI double in the fourth, which broke a scoreless tie. Joc Pederson drove in the game-winning run with a single that scored Jansen in the fifth.
deGrom’s dominance continued a superior scoreless stretch by Rangers starters. They have now tossed 27 consecutive scoreless innings, the longest such span since July 9-16, 2011, when the streak ended after an eye-popping 30 1/3 scoreless frames.
“I think this is what we envisioned in the offseason,” Schumaker said. “I think this is what we were kind of hoping for -- offseason, Spring Training -- and they’ve been on a roll. [Pitching coaches] Jordan Tiegs, Dave Bush, Colby Suggs have been fantastic with them, but our catchers have done really, really well just game calling and reading swings, and with the game planning. It’s been fun to watch.”
The big celebration with his teammates may have been a little unusual for deGrom -- “I don’t really remember; it’s been a while,” he mused -- but the celebrations with the people he holds dearest will come somewhat more naturally. He was equally skeptical that his young son would appreciate the depths of the accomplishment at his age as he was unsure that Nolan would be able to identify the precise day of his birthday.
What might work, he admitted, is the sort of grand gesture that a toddler and a victory centenarian can both enjoy together. Like, say, a cake with a No. 3 candle at one end and a No. 100 at the other.
“Sure,” he laughed when offered the suggestion. “We’ll do that when I get back.”