Texas Rangers $185 million gamble on Jacob deGrom already looks bad

Texas Rangers spring training camp has just started, and superstar pitcher Jacob deGrom is already dealing with an injury.

Jacob deGrom was one of the most intriguing free agents on the market this past season. While this past season he showed that he was his usual dominant self, he did deal with a multitude of injuries over the past couple of years. That didn’t scare away the Texas Rangers, who are looking to make a run to the postseason, as they handed deGrom a five-year, $185 million contract. With that, deGrom is their undisputed ace.

On Wednesday, the Rangers’ official Twitter account shared a photo of deGrom walking into their spring training facility with a caption reading “deGrom clocking in.” Less than an hour later, the Rangers fanbase received news they probably didn’t want to hear.

General manager Chris Young told reporters that deGrom felt some tightness in his left side and that they’re going to hold him back for a day or so, citing the cold weather and how camp just started. Young says that in regards to the severity of the injury, deGrom would have pitched through it if it were the regular season, per Levi Weaver of The Athletic. Young said that it was his call to rest deGrom.

Jacob deGrom already dealing with injury in Rangers’ spring training

It certainly isn’t the news that Rangers fans want to hear, but from the sound of it now, it’s not a severe injury. But, it will be one worth monitoring in the coming days.

deGrom has dealt with a variety of injuries over the years. Midway through the 2021 season, the right-hander dealt with inflammation of the UCL. Although it didn’t require surgery, deGrom was shut down for the rest of the year. deGrom missed the first half of last season dealing with a stress reaction of the scapula of his pitching shoulder. He made his season debut on Aug. 2, 2022.

Even with that extended period of time missed, deGrom had good showings upon his return. In 11 starts, deGrom recorded a 3.08 ERA, a 0.746 WHIP, 102 strikeouts, and eight walks in 64.1 innings pitched.

Young stressed that the team was using an abundance of caution with deGrom. Again, it will be something that Rangers fans will monitor to make sure that it truly isn’t a serious injury.