So far this season, the New York Mets have been known to have plenty of good young pitching, with one of the best pitching staffs in the entire league. Despite only having one All-Star this year, New York was represented very well.
Matt Harvey has gotten most of the publicity around the league, as he is coming off of his Tommy John surgery, and people were curious if he could pick up where he left off. But, it was not Harvey that made the trip to Cincinnati, it was the reigning N.L. Rookie of the Year, Jacob deGrom.
Just like every All Star Game, managers of both sides try to get as many players as they can into the game. For deGrom, he got the call from manager Bruce Bochy in the top of the sixth inning.
deGrom went through his routine, and was set to take the mound in his first All-Star Game appearance.
First up to the plate was Oakland Athletics catcher/first baseman Stephen Vogt. The first pitch of the inning was a fastball at 96 mph, right on the outside corner, which caught Vogt looking. The second pitch might as well had been a replay, as deGrom through another 96 mph fastball right on the outside part of the plate. The third and final pitch of the at-bat was a rising fastball at 97 mph, which Vogt had no chance of catching. It was strikeout number one for deGrom.
Next up was Cleveland Indians second baseman Jason Kipnis. Kipnis has had a great first half of the season, hitting .323, so it was a good matchup between him and deGrom. deGrom's first pitch to Kipnis was a 98 mph fastball on the outside half that caught him looking. The next pitch did the same, as deGrom painted a 97 mph fastball on the outside black. deGrom then threw his first ball of the inning outside, but came roaring back with a 97 mph fastball that blew Kipnis away. It was back-to-back K’s from deGrom.
The third and final batter of the inning was Detroit Tigers shortstop Jose Iglesias. Like Kipnis, Iglesias is having a career year so far, and absolutely deserved his spot on the All-Star team. deGrom continued to go with what was working, as he blew Iglesias away with the first pitch of the at-bat at 97 mph. deGrom then made it look unfair, as he threw back-to-back sliders down in the zone, and had Iglesias wrapped up in a mental pretzel.
It only took deGrom ten pitches to strike out the side - TEN. He was the first pitcher in All-Star Game history to strike out the side with 10 pitches or less.
Courtesy of MLB.com, here is how the inning went for deGrom:
This great outing by deGrom wasn’t anything new to Mets fans, but it definitely put the entire baseball world on notice. Matt Harvey may be the Dark Knight of New York, but Jacob deGrom officially put his name out there tonight, and showed off his talented right arm.