Next Steps for Rangers Ace Jacob deGrom

If Jacob deGrom works out Sunday, it will be a light one designed to get his arm moving.

Texas Rangers pitcher Jacob deGrom could take part in his first workout on Sunday, though it’s unlikely that he will pitch a bullpen session.

Rangers general manager Chris Young said that if deGrom hits the field it would just be a chance to get the veteran pitcher’s arm moving and take part in PFPs.

“He’s feeling really good,” Young said. “He’s made a lot of improvement. Assuming everything goes smoothly today I think we’ll see him back out on the field tomorrow.”

From there, a bullpen session would be the next step, though Young wouldn’t commit to a date for deGrom to go through his first session at Spring Training uniform. But he expressed no concern with where deGrom is at right now.

“He came in sort of ahead of schedule as compared to where he’s been in the past,” Young said. “He’s thrown off the mound six times and I think he’ll catch back up quickly."

The Rangers continue to be extremely cautious with deGrom after he reported to Spring Training on Tuesday with what he described as left side tightness. deGrom said Thursday that the setback is minor and if this were the regular season, he would be throwing.

But since he’s just signed a five-year, $185 million contract, the Rangers are taking it slow, especially since there's not a Spring Training game until next week.

“When I got here, they just said, ‘Hey, let's take a couple days and knock this all the way out,” deGrom said.

deGrom missed half of the 2021 season due to right elbow inflammation. He missed the first half of last season with a stress reaction in his right scapula.

Last year he went 5-4 with a 3.08 ERA in 11 starts with the Mets, but only played two months due to the scapula injury.

deGrom has pitched truncated seasons each of the last three years. The 2020 season was truncated due to COVID-19. In 2021 he went 7-2 with a 1.08 ERA, earned an All-Star Game berth and was ninth in Cy Young voting despite the injury.

Before that, deGrom was highly durable. He made 30 or more starts in four of his first six seasons in the Majors, with his 2018 and 2019 seasons both leading to National League Cy Young awards. In 2018 he led the Majors with a 1.70 ERA, followed by a a 2.43 ERA in 2019.

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