ARLINGTON -- The Rangers won just two games in this seven-game homestand. Texas ace Jacob deGrom started both games, giving him his first consecutive wins since Aug. 7 and 13, 2022, when he was still with the Mets.
deGrom’s five one-run innings on Sunday halted the Rangers’ four-game losing streak as he -- and some timely offensive production -- propelled them to an 8-1 win over the Mariners at Globe Life Field.
“It feels good,” deGrom said. “The goal is to win. That's the main goal for the team -- to win in whatever way we can do it. We’ve just gotta find ways to keep on doing it. Whether it's the offense picking us up, or the pitching staff picking them up, we gotta collectively as a group find ways to do so.”
deGrom wasn’t his sharpest -- and his pitch count rose due to a lot of deep counts and a pair of walks that loaded the bases in the third inning -- but he was able to limit the damage and allow just the one run to keep the Rangers in the game.
He admitted that he was fighting himself a bit today, and was dealing with the same mechanical issues that plagued him throughout the spring and early into the season. After he loaded the bases in the third inning with walks of Julio Rodríguez and Cal Raleigh, deGrom bore down to end the frame and the threat.
“The guy on the mound is the guy on the mound,” said catcher Jonah Heim. “He's got his stuff no matter what the day is, so even when he feels a little off, his stuff's still going to be there. It's pretty electric, and like I said before, when he's throwing all his pitches for strikes and we can use them whenever we want, it's going to be a pretty good day for us.”
deGrom collected his 1,700th career strikeout when he caught Jorge Polanco looking in the second inning. He did it in 225 games, the fastest in MLB since at least 1901, surpassing Randy Johnson and Yu Darvish, who each reached 1,700 strikeouts in 230 games. deGrom is the 13th active pitcher to accomplish the feat, including current teammate Patrick Corbin.
“It was just another great start, maybe not quite as sharp, but he gave up one run in five innings,” said manager Bruce Bochy. “He worked a little harder today, but he's just so good. He's good. He’s obviously a tremendous pitcher, with his command and everything and the poise. It's good to see him healthy and just throwing the ball the way he is.”
Texas scored more runs in Sunday’s win than it did in the previous four games -- all losses -- combined.
deGrom has received 18 runs of support over his last two starts (12 on Tuesday vs. Oakland, six today), the most he’s received in a two-start span since a career-high 23 runs of support between his two starts Sept. 6 and 11, 2020, with the Mets.
“It’s so easy playing behind him,” said Josh Smith, who went 4-for-5 in the win. “You feel like if you can score one or two runs, you're gonna win every game. That’s kind of how it's been the whole year with everybody, but he's just so good out there. He's confident. He pitches quick. He kind of starts everything for us. Again, it's easy to play behind him, and he keeps the momentum of the game going.”
The Rangers scored 23 total runs in the two deGrom starts and wins this homestand, while scoring just four runs in the other five games.
While one good offensive game doesn’t change anything in the grand scheme of things, Bochy said he felt like this was a “critical” win for the Rangers as they head off on another road trip to Boston and Detroit.
It’s good for the psyche to have a happy flight and avoid the sweep, even as they continue to search for offensive consistency day-in and day-out.
“We were going out there like any normal day, but I feel like a lot of shoulders relaxed during the game today,” Heim said. “I feel like one through nine, everybody put together some great at-bats and hit some balls really hard. We’re still trusting the process. We'll turn it around. This offense is too good to not. I think we'll figure it out. We’ll be just fine.”