NEW YORK — To the dismay of every Mets fan at Citi Field, and perhaps every fan of the sport itself, Mets ace Jacob deGrom exited his start after five innings with an apparent injury.
DeGrom departed his outing “due to precautionary reasons with right side tightness,” the team announced about 30 mins after he walked off the hill. DeGrom experienced the same irritation in his side when he was forced to miss his last start on May 4 in St. Louis.
The dominant pitcher quickly ran out to the mound to start the sixth and tossed a couple of warmup pitches to catcher James McCann before Mets head trainer Brian Chicklo jogged out and checked on him. After a brief discussion between Chicklo, McCann and Luis Rojas, deGrom slumped his shoulders, walked off the mound and disappeared into the Mets clubhouse.
Shrugging off the clear disappointment, the Mets offense continued to put up runs and the bullpen held Arizona’s bats at bay through a steady curtain of rain. And the Mets, despite their past week of adversity, beat the Diamondbacks 4-2 on Sunday and swept the series for their fifth consecutive win. Edwin Diaz secured his second-career five-out save, collecting his fifth save of the season and first five-out save as a member of the Mets.
The Amazin’s five-game winning streak, accomplished without regular starters Brandon Nimmo and J.D. Davis, is their longest stretch of victories since August 2019, when the club won eight straight games. Even though the Mets have improved for a 16-13 record, deGrom’s early exit was a wet blanket on the team’s good vibes.
DeGrom looked a bit off and a lot unlike himself in his sixth outing of the season against the Diamondbacks on Sunday — his first start back since being sidelined with right lat inflammation. Even though looking “off” for deGrom meant giving up one run on one hit with six strikeouts over 68 pitches, those who have watched deGrom’s starts closely over the years were well aware he was struggling.
The right-hander had a permanent scowl on his face from the first inning, never mind the fact that he brought a perfect game into the fifth. In the bottom of the third, deGrom placed a perfect bunt down the third-base line and beat out the throw for a single and his seventh hit of the year. He smartly ran around the bases, tagging at second on a deep fly ball, and scored on Michael Conforto’s RBI single.
DeGrom is usually at his best when he’s ventured into a sticky situation. Though he may not be pleasant to watch, sneering and constantly shaking his head, those are the moments when his best pitches are showcased. The Mets ace loaded the bases with nobody out in the fifth inning on a walk, a double and another walk. He induced a huge double-play ball to Nick Ahmed, but that allowed a run to score. DeGrom walked one more batter — three total in the inning – before striking out Christian Walker for his final out of the fifth and escaping the jam with just one run scored.
The double deGrom allowed to Stephen Vogt in the fifth inning was the first extra-base hit allowed by the Mets pitching staff in four games. Reliever Miguel Castro picked up the ball next and preserved the 2-1 lead the ace left behind. Jacob Barnes allowed a solo shot to old friend Asdrubal Cabrera in the eighth, but otherwise the Diamondbacks were kept off the board.
The Mets’ five-game winning streak is remarkable when considering the recent hardship they’ve overcome. Over the past week, the Mets fired beloved hitting coaches Chili Davis and Tom Slater, and hired analytically driven instructors Hugh Quattlebaum and Kevin Howard to replace them. Then their star shortstop Francisco Lindor and Jeff McNeil were involved in a tunnel spat — covered up by a tale involving a rat, raccoon or possum — all before deGrom’s unsuccessful return from lat inflammation.
