PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. — As batters are just getting used to seeing live pitching again, facing Jacob deGrom continues to be unfair.
The Mets ace hurled two shutout innings and struck out five of the seven batters he faced in his Grapefruit League debut against the Astros on Tuesday at Clover Park. His fastball topped out at 99 mph and he was finished after 30 pitches in his first time facing another team in over eight months.
“I was nervous to be honest with you,” deGrom said after his outing. “First time facing another team, guys in another uniform, I was a little nervous. The main thing I worked on this offseason, I feel like it carried over pretty well today. It was just being really smooth down the mound. That was the main concern today, and everything felt good. Felt like I was in-sync and I was able to locate the ball pretty well, so I was happy with how the day went.”
