NEW YORK _ The Mets announced on Wednesday that Jacob deGrom's 2018 NL Cy Young Award and a game-worn road jersey have been added to the collection at the team Hall of Fame in Citi Field.
Right on cue, deGrom went out on Wednesday night and produced an outing that was vintage 2018. The right-hander, who had a 9.69 ERA over his last three starts, threw seven shutout innings against the Reds on a misty night.
Unfortunately for deGrom, the Mets' offense reverted to its 2018 form, at least from when he was on the mound. The Mets didn't score over the first seven innings either, so deGrom was left with a no-decision.
Jose Iglesias' two-out, ninth-inning home run inside the left-field foul pole off Edwin Diaz was the game's only run. The Mets, who had five hits against five Reds pitchers, went down meekly in the bottom of the ninth to conclude a 1-0 loss before 22,119.
Still, the outing was a huge leap forward for deGrom, whose three-start struggles included a trip to the 10-day injured list with a "barking" elbow.
Once deGrom's health was no longer in question, all that remained was getting him back to his Cy Young form.
DeGrom was perfect for the first three innings with three strikeouts and didn't allow a hit until opposing pitcher Anthony DeSclafani lined a single to right with one out in the fifth.
Overall, deGrom gave up three hits (all singles), walked two, hit a batter and struck out six. He threw 101 pitches, 74 for strikes. His ERA dropped from 4.85 to 3.82.
Cincinnati's first baserunner was Joey Votto, who led off the fourth with a long drive to center that Brandon Nimmo chased down and misplayed for a two-base error.
DeGrom struck out Eugenio Suarez, walked Jesse Winker on a high 3-and-2 pitch, and struck out Yasiel Puig, also on 3-and-2, for the second out. Puig was so incensed at the outcome that he snapped his bat in two over his knee.
DeGrom then hit Derek Dietrich with a pitch to load the bases. He went to 3-and-2 on Tucker Barnhart before striking out the Reds' catcher to end the inning.
The game was still scoreless, but the fourth took a toll on deGrom's pitch count, which was at 72 after the inning.
The Reds threatened again in the seventh, when Barnhart drew a leadoff walk and Iglesias grounded a single to left. Iglesias' hit caused deGrom to bend over in emotional pain.
But deGrom buckled down and got Scott Schebler to ground into a 6-4-3 double play as Barnhart took third. No. 9 batter Jose Peraza lofted a fly ball to right; as soon as it left the bat, deGrom started walking off the mound. He was on his way to the dugout, his night's work over, when the ball settled in Michael Conforto's glove to end the inning.
The Mets had one final chance to secure a win for deGrom in the bottom of the seventh. J.D. Davis led off with a single against reliever Wandy Peralta. One out later, Amed Rosario singled Davis to second
Reds manager David Bell brought on right-hander Jared Hughes, who struck out pinch hitter Wilson Ramos for the second out. Dominic Smith, batting for deGrom, grounded out, and the game headed to the eighth still tied at zero.
Before the game, Mets manager Mickey Callaway expressed confidence that deGrom would snap out of his funk.
"We've talked about this with a couple of our guys," Callaway said. "He just has to focus on getting the ball where he wants to. Once he gets ahead, make sure he executes the next pitch. If he does that, his stuff has been there _ his stuff's always going to be there _ he'll have success. We're looking for a good one out of him tonight."
They got it. It was right out of 2018 _ for better and worse.
