SURPRISE, Ariz. — The Rangers are ready to unveil Jacob deGrom to the public.
Manager Bruce Bochy said Friday that deGrom will face Seattle on Sunday at Surprise Stadium in his first official start of the spring. DeGrom was behind the other pitchers after reporting some side soreness when he arrived in camp on Feb. 14. He most recently threw two innings in a Triple-A exhibition game Monday, allowing a home run in a 24-pitch outing. He did not walk anybody and struck out five.
DeGrom is likely to be on a pitch count of about 45-50 pitches against Seattle, the equivalent of about three innings. The Rangers don’t face the Mariners during the regular season until early May.
If DeGrom comes back on five days of rest after the Seattle outing, he’d also start the Arizona finale against San Diego on March 25. That would put him on track to start the season opener against Philadelphia on March 30.
Both Bochy and deGrom have indicated the expectation the pitcher would be on a pretty strict pitch count in his first one or two starts.
