ARLINGTON -- All Jacob deGrom wanted to do was pitch.
After Tommy John surgery sidelined deGrom for most of the 2023-24 seasons, the Rangers’ ace wanted nothing more than to be on the mound. Perhaps the best part of ‘25 for Texas was that he was able to accomplish that.
deGrom was named the American League Comeback Player of the Year in the 2025 Players Choice Awards, the Major League Baseball Players Association announced on Wednesday. He became just the third Rangers player to win the award, joining Hunter Pence (‘19) and Prince Fielder (‘15).
“Signing here and blowing out right away was obviously devastating for me,” deGrom said on CBS This Morning. “Thirty-five years old and getting the news that I was going to need a second surgery, that was a tough blow. We were kind of back and forth on whether I was going to be able to pitch or not.
“A year and a half later, it was like, ‘Do I still have it?’ There was a little bit of doubt. Every day you’re able to put this uniform on is a day that you’re thankful to be out there playing. You never know when your last day is going to be playing this game. … You never know how much time you’re going to get, so let's enjoy doing it and leaving it all out on the field.”
It wasn’t without hiccups -- it never is -- but deGrom was in vintage form for much of the season.
The 37-year-old deGrom was the Rangers’ lone All-Star in 2025, going 12-8 with a 2.97 ERA in 30 starts after injury-shortened ‘23 and ‘24 campaigns. deGrom's 0.92 WHIP was the lowest by a qualified pitcher in Texas history and ranked second in the AL to Tarik Skubal (0.89), who very well could win his second straight AL Cy Young Award next month.
deGrom led the Rangers in innings (172 2/3), strikeouts (185) and wins. His 30 games, along with his innings and strikeout totals, were all his highest figures since his National League Cy Young Award-winning season of 2019 with the Mets (32 starts, 204 innings, 255 strikeouts).
“It means a lot,” deGrom said after his final start of the 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 is also a tough critic. He admitted that there were some things he could’ve done better, particularly as it pertains to the long ball. The 26 homers he surrendered this season were the second most he has allowed in his career (28 in 201 1/3 innings in 2017).
“There are some starts that are still bothering me,” deGrom said. “There was quite a lot of damage done, a lot of home runs. So I'm going to look into what was going on there. I know a lot of them were missed spots, but some of them were decent pitches that guys hit out. So I'll reflect on some of that and try to figure out how to fix that in the offseason.”
So what’s next for deGrom, who has won just about everything he wanted in his return in 2025?
The postseason is No. 1. deGrom missed out on the Rangers’ World Series run in 2023 after his surgery, and has pitched in the postseason only twice in his career (‘15 and ‘22 with the Mets).
No. 2 is increasing the volume once again.
“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’ve got to … prepare for next year. That's the goal, to go out there, throw 200 innings and pitch in the postseason.”