ARLINGTON -- At Texas Rangers Fan Fest in February, Jacob deGrom told the media contingent that he wanted to make 30 starts in 2025.
What he got in response was skepticism from every direction. Not many expected it to actually happen. And that’s fair.
But on Wednesday night, deGrom took the mound in the Rangers’ 4-2 win over the Twins at Globe Life Field, as “Simple Man” rang through the ballpark for his 30th start of the 2025 season.
“It's an absolute win for the organization, and for Jacob,” president of baseball operations Chris Young said pregame. “If you had told me before the year that he would have 30 starts, I would be thrilled, and I am. I'm so happy for him. He's worked so hard. And to see him get 30 starts and have the year he's had, it's pretty special.”
deGrom’s 30th didn’t get off to a perfect start though. The Rangers' ace allowed a leadoff homer to Twins outfielder Byron Buxton to open Wednesday night’s matchup, briefly silencing the crowd at Globe Life Field.
But in typical deGrom fashion, he cruised afterwards, allowing just two other baserunners throughout the remainder of his start, finishing with one-run ball over five innings and eight strikeouts.
“He's one of the best that you’ll ever see,” said Twins manager Rocco Baldelli. “He’s still throwing the ball at a real high level. I’ve seen him throw live only a few times, and he’s a little older now, but he doesn’t pitch like he’s older. When he’s feeling good and strong, he still throws the ball great. It's going to be a challenging day when he’s out there.”
deGrom concluded the 2025 season with a 2.97 ERA, becoming the fourth qualified Ranger to record a sub-3.00 ERA since 2000: Martin Pérez in 2022, Yu Darvish in 2013 and CJ Wilson in 2011. He is also the first Texas pitcher to finish a season as a qualifier with a sub-3.00 ERA and a sub-1.00 WHIP (0.921).
Among AL qualifiers, deGrom ranked among the league leaders in WHIP (2nd, 0.92), opponent batting average (2nd, .196), opponent OPS (T4th, .596), ERA (6th, 2.97) and strikeouts (T8th, 185) at the conclusion of Wednesday's game.
This is the first time deGrom has eclipsed 100 innings since his National League Cy Young Award-winning season with the Mets in 2019, and he blew through it at a final number of 172 2/3.
“It means a lot,” deGrom said of his durability this season. “It's been a long time since I've done it. So to go out there and continue running out there was big for me. … This game can be tough. I missed a lot of time. I set a goal for 30 and to run out there as many times as I could. I thought it was realistic. I'm happy that I was able to accomplish that.”
deGrom admitted there were discussions in Spring Training regarding his workload as he entered his first full season after his second Tommy John surgery. And the Rangers handled it strategically. They set him up to start the fourth game of the regular season, instead of Opening Day, as well as the fifth day after the All-Star break.
He only really needed to skip one start this season, on Aug. 20 in Kansas City, due to shoulder fatigue.
“The goal is to run out there as many times as I could,” deGrom said. “We didn't know how many times that would be. I felt pretty good the whole way through. We skipped the one, and then I was able to just keep going. I was happy to run out there 30 times. Obviously, there's some starts I wish I could have back, but that's baseball.”
Whatever doubt there was that he would do it was not found in the Rangers’ clubhouse.
“I believed in him the whole time that he’d have a full season this year,” said second baseman Marcus Semien, who had a season-ending foot injury. “It was definitely fun playing behind him. He's a guy who's very hard on himself. You look at his numbers, you say, ‘Wow, it's a great year.’ But you ask him, and he's like, ‘Man, I wish I could have done this or that.’ He was an All-Star. He was our ace the entire year. I’m looking forward to watching him for one last start, and then seeing how he comes back next year.”
And what does deGrom see for next year?
“Try to repeat it and go for 200 [innings],” deGrom said. “I think I can do it. I want to take the ball as many times as I can. Obviously, this season didn't end how we wanted it. We fell short of [the postseason]. Now we gotta finish the rest of this year strong and prepare for next year. That's the goal, to go out there, throw 200 innings and pitch in the postseason.”