Reese Kaplan -- Flying Solo to the All Star Game

Shortly the final votes will tally for the All Star Game taking place at Coors Field in Denver to help pit the best of the best in the NL against the AL for an interesting but meaningless exhibition game.  On the offensive side of the ledger the Mets will have returning Home Run Derby champion Pete Alonso taking on all comers, but if you pay closer attention to the rosters don’t expect to see any offensive players from the Mets making their way to Colorado.  For a team that’s spent most of the season in first place, it’s a head shaking moment to realize that there’s not a single guy who swings the bat that is worthy of votes to represent the National League.  

Of course, the Mets have been getting offense done with mirrors for most of the year.  It’s their pitching that’s kept them ahead of the rest of their division.  Despite the umpires’ silly efforts at enforcing the new sticky-substance agenda from Major League Baseball, Jacob deGrom will be surely representing the Mets for this annual event.  

If you take a look at his numbers, deGrom is operating on another plane entirely from the rest of the baseball.  While many will purport that his performance cannot possibly be sustained over the course of an entire 162 game season, you do have to shake your head in wonder at what he’s accomplished thus far.

First of all there’s the ERA.  Right now it sits at an eye-popping 0.50.  That is not a misprint.  He is giving up merely a half a run per 9 innings pitched.  Bob Gibson must be turning over in his grave after delivering a full season at a record setting 1.12 in 1968 when he went 22-9, earning both the Cy Young Award and the NL MVP Award as well as recording an All Star Game appearance for one of his eight appearances.  

What’s even wilder (to me, at least) is that he’s also sporting a WHIP metric of just 0.514.  That means he’s allowing roughly a half a baserunner per inning pitched.  Look at little closer and you see that in his 72 innings pitched he’s only allowed 27 hits.  He’s struck out 117 and walked only 10.  Even in Stratomatic types of baseball simulation games you never saw a pitcher delivering at anywhere close to this level.  

If you want to pick on anything with deGrom, it’s his time missed healing from injuries.  He’s had 12 starts thus far which is a bit on the low side compared to the 16 or so offered up by other National League hurlers.  His record is 7-2 which is pretty awesome considering what he’s done, and you have to scratch your head wondering how not one but two teams beat him. 

 

If there was a fairness to the selection of pitchers, deGrom would not be making that trek to the Rockies’ home stadium alone.  Also in the top ten in ERA for this season is Marcus Stroman who is a mere 6-5 over 15 starts, but sports a very impressive 2.32 ERA for his effort.  His 1.055 WHIP would be making people drool if not for deGrom’s otherworldly number.

Then there’s the even more surprising output from young pitcher Taijuan Walker who the Mets signed as a free agent in the off season.  He’s apparently healthy and thus far has delivered even better than they could have anticipated.  Over his 13 starts he has a sparkling 1.049 WHIP, a 3:1 strikeout to walk ratio and a 2.42 ERA to go along with his 6-2 record.

As good as Edwin Diaz has been for the Mets this year, he’s not even in the top ten consideration for relievers.  His 2.73 ERA is quite good but 16 saves doesn’t match the top firemen in the league despite his great strikeout, walk and WHIP numbers.

Oddly, however, neither Stroman nor Walker are likely to accompany deGrom based upon pure performance numbers as there are plenty of other pitchers around the league who while not in deGrom’s strata, are still worthy to experience their own Rocky Mountain high.  Then there is the tradition of bringing in people based upon past performance and contract size.  Expect, for example, to see $40 million man Trevor Bauer whose ERA is higher than Stroman’s and Walker’s but he represents a big name team and holds the league’s highest annual paycheck.  

Even if it’s just Jacob deGrom making the trek out west, no Mets fans should be disappointed (other than the friends and family of Marcus Stroman, Taijuan Walker and Edwin Diaz).  In fact, if deGrom is in Colorado, it may not be a bad thing that he doesn’t waste pitches in this game as the Mets are trying to win a pennant.  2021 has been a very strange year, indeed.