Jacob deGrom DVOA, Advanced Stats, & Fantasy Rankings

Texas Rangers starting pitcher Jacob deGrom made his season debut against the Boston Red Sox on Sunday. Rangers manager Bruce Bochy said ahead of time that deGrom would be limited to around 75 pitches in this game. Despite that, deGrom gave fantasy managers a strong outing on Sunday. He tossed five scoreless innings, allowing two hits, and striking out six batters in the win over Boston. This was a great start to the season for deGrom, but the key is keeping him healthy. That being said, fantasy managers shouldn't be shocked if the team continues to ease deGrom into things early in the season.

Texas Rangers starting pitcher Jacob deGrom will likely only throw 75 pitches in his first start on Sunday afternoon against the Boston Red Sox. deGrom missed the majority of the 2024 campaign due to Tommy John surgery. He returned at the end of the campaign and logged just 10 2/3 innings of work. In spring training, deGrom was able to make three starts and logged 10 innings to the tune of a 4.50 ERA. Fantasy managers should monitor his status on Sunday, but it appears the Rangers will continue to slowly increase his workload as the 36-year-old has only pitched more than 90 innings in a single season once since 2020. Over the past three campaigns, deGrom has logged just 105 1/3 total innings to the tune of a stellar 2.82 ERA and a 0.79 WHIP. Even though he may be limited in this start, he should still be viewed as a high-end SP2 in all formats.

Texas Rangers right-hander Jacob deGrom (illness) tossed three innings in a minor-league game on Friday after he was scratched from his scheduled Cactus League start on Thursday due to a stomach bug that is going around the clubhouse. deGrom should be able to make another spring outing soon and he will be ready for the start of the 2025 regular season, although the Rangers plan to ease him in at the back end of their starting rotation. The 36-year-old two-time Cy Young winner and four-time All-Star made only three starts in 2024 while coming back from Tommy John surgery. When considering the fact that he only made six stars for Texas in 2023, it makes complete sense for the Rangers to slow-play deGrom so that he can make it through the year healthy. deGrom is an extreme risk/reward in fantasy, but if he can stay healthy, he has league-winning ace upside.