The Rangers announced that they had signed Jacob DeGrum for a five-year contract. It’s a $185 million surety, ESPN’s Jeff Bassan reports (Twitter link). The deal includes a full no-trade clause and a conditional option for the 2028 campaign that could be worth a total of $222 million, according to Passan. deGrom is a VC Sports Group client.
“We are glad Jacob deGrom decided to become a Texas RangerGeneral Manager Chris Young said in a press release. “Over a number of seasons, Jacob has been a standout in the American League, giving us dominant performances at the top of our rotation. One of our primary goals this off-season is to boost starting, and we add one of the best goals.“
It’s the biggest move of the season so far and the latest huge free agent strike from Arlington. The Rangers have committed more than half a billion dollars to the trio Corey SeegerAnd the Marcus Semin And the John Gray last winter. This is designed to lay the groundwork for a full return to competition in 2023. Rangers have yet to see their desired steps forward from a win-loss perspective in 2022, largely due to a lackluster rotation behind Gray and Martin Perez. Texas has indicated that it is ready to attack the top of the market to fortify the biggest weakness on the list. They did it with a shocking five-year deal for the sport’s Most Valuable Player.
DeGrom is one of the most accomplished armies of his generation. While he fell in the ninth round of the 2010 draft and didn’t make it to the majors until after he celebrated his 26th birthday in 2014, he instantly solidified himself as one of the best pitchers in the game. DeGrom worked to a 2.69 ERA in his first 22 starts to secure the NL Rookie of the Year award and start his career as one of the league’s best pitchers.
Right posted an ERA between 2.54 and 3.53 in each of the next three seasons, twice receiving Cy Young support in the bottom ballot. Already a borderline hitter, he took his game to new heights in 2018. DeGrom pitched 217 innings with an MLB-best 1.70 ERA to secure his first Young Cy. The Mets signed him to a $120.5 million extension after that season. He followed that up by repeating as the Senior Circuit’s leading pitcher, claiming second Cy Young with a 2.43 mark over 204 innings pitched. He had another dominant season in the shortened 2020 campaign, going down to one of the greatest first half runs in history in 2,121.
Through his first 15 starts that year, the four-time All-Star posted a microscopic 1.08 ERA while striking out 45.1% from opposing hitters. He was bothered by some minor health issues for the first few months, culminating in an injured roster that experienced forearm tightness around the All-Star break. While this was not initially expected to result in a prolonged absence, DeGroom would end up missing the remainder of the season. That September, New York head Sandy Alderson said DeGrum was dealing with a low-grade tear in his UCL, an eyebrow-raising assertion considering the right-hander had Tommy John surgery before making his MLB debut. The pitcher refuted this, describing his bond as “completely fine”.
After a full rest, DeGrom was expected to return in 2022. Late in spring training, he felt some soreness during the throwing program between starts. He was diagnosed with a stress reaction in his shoulder blade and his back locked up again, and the injury ended up plaguing him for the first four months of last season. By the time he returned to the mound in early August, more than a full calendar year had passed.
With this kind of layoff, one would probably expect DeGrom to show some signs of rust. Instead, he returned as his peak slash, instantly dominating opponents once more. The Stetson product averaged an absurd 98.9 mph on the fastball and 92.6 mph on the cutter/slider that is its secondary offering. He struck out 42.7% of opponents for a meager 3.3% walk percentage. Opposing hitters swung and lost 21.1% of his total runs. No other pitcher with more than 50 innings pitched had a swing strike rate higher than 17%. He struck out eight in six innings during the only start against San Diego.
A three-way outing in Atlanta to end his season brought deGrum’s ERA to 3.08 in his abbreviated season, but there’s no question he can still perform at his top level if he’s healthy. No pitcher on the planet is as dominant as DeGrom on a per-start basis. It was speculated that he opted out of the last $32.5 million in his deal with the Mets at the end of the season.
As high as this signing could be for the Rangers, there’s definitely a lot of risk in that kind of commitment for a pitcher who’s lost large portions of the past two seasons to arm problems. He’s worked out just 162 1/3 innings (including the playoffs) since the start of 2021. While DeGrom didn’t have a pro-season domination in 2020, he’s still expected to handle a full rotation workload despite throwing 224 1/2 Only 3 cumulative roles over the past three years.
DeGrum turns 35 in June. There is no indication that it is about to have any decline in performance. The Texans’ commitment runs through his 39-year-old campaign, and there’s a chance the deal could go sideways if his form fades later in his 30s. Now a former classmate Max Scherzer And fellow best free agent Justin Verlander Show that it is not a question for a pitcher to remain at his peak form as he approaches the age of 40. Neither Scherzer nor Verlander dealt with the kind of injuries in their mid-30s that plague Degrom, though.
The $185 million guarantee significantly beats MLBTR’s three-year projection, which is $135 million at the start of the season. It is the sixth-largest trade for a free agent pitcher in MLB history, after a trade Gerrit Cole ($324 million), Stephen Strasburg ($245 million), David Price ($217 million), Scherzer ($210 million with the Nationals) and Zack Grenk ($206.5 million). The deal has an average annual value of $37 million and ranks second among any deal in big league history. Only Scherzer’s three-year deal with the Mets—which came to $43.333 million per season—is higher.
The specific financial collapse of the deal has not been reported. If distributed evenly, the $37 million salary would bring the Texan’s projected 2023 salary commitments to about $177 million. That would be a franchise-record tally for the Rangers, but there’s no indication the organization plans to cut back on spending anytime soon. Owner Ray Davis and Young have both indicated that there is scope for the club to be active on the open market, and there is still a lot of work to be done in turning their 68-win roster into a contender in the tough AL West. Youngster and captain Bruce Bochy is heading into their first full season at the helm, expecting to break their six-year playoff drought.
Degrum goes to the top of the rotation bringing back Gray and Perez, who have accepted a qualifying offer. Rangers earned Jake Odorezy From the Braves at the start of the season, and Dan Dunning It is a back-fitting arm. This is a viable five-a-side start, but the team’s rotation depth is still lacking and they could add another arm from outside the organisation. The fender and catch are in strong condition. Adolis Garcia He is the only player to guarantee two reps each day, leaving two points to tackle, and the team numbers to add at least one assistant.
Financial collapse aside, DeGrom’s contract contains a $37 million luxury tax. The average annual values of the team’s liabilities are relevant for competitive credit tax purposes. DeGrom’s signing brings Texas about $192 million in estimated CBT numbers, per roster supplier, leaving them about $40 million shy of the lowest threshold of $233 million.
The Mets will have to quickly turn the page, bidding farewell to one of the best pitchers in franchise history. New York also saw Chris BassettAnd the Taeguan Walker And the Trevor Williams Hit free agency. Sure enough, they would add to the starting team led by Scherzer W Carlos Carrasco. Free Agency offers a pair of remaining Aces in Verlander and Carlos Rodon, and the big-spending Mets have previously been linked to both shooters. Losing deGrom numbers only to increase their urgency to bring in one of these two hurlers, and they’ll need to keep or replace the free quarterback Brandon Nemo.
New York receives modest compensation for DeGrom’s departure. The team made him a qualifying offer at the start of the season, which he turned down. As a luxury tax-paying team in 2022, New York receives the lowest compensation: a fourth-round pick from next year’s amateur draft. Rangers did not pay a luxury tax and did not receive a revenue share this year. So they will give up their second-highest pick in next year’s draft and lose out on $500,000 in international signing bonus space. If they sign another eligible free agent this offseason — Seager and Semien both had QOs denied last winter — they’ll be stripped of their third-highest pick.
Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.
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