Jacob deGrom's return too late for 2024 but inspires optimism for 2025

The Texas Rangers welcomed back one of the most dominant pitchers of the 21st century this week. Jacob deGrom was back on the mound for the first time since April 2023 after suffering a torn UCL and undergoing Tommy John surgery for the second time in his career.

deGrom, 36, tossed 3.2 innings of shutout baseball in his return. He looked solid in his return, topping out near 100 MPH with his fastball while flashing his incredible off-speed offerings as well. He didn't look like the Cy Young pitcher he was a few seasons ago, but that's to be expected as he continues rehabbing and working back to a full workload.

Getting back out there this season was important to deGrom, even if he couldn't help put the Rangers into the postseason.

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Jacob deGrom makes long awaited return despite Rangers being out of a playoff race

The Rangers pitcher hasn't held back about the difficulty of injuries over his career. He recently talked about the importance of getting back to the mound this season rather than waiting until 2025.

"You go through this process and I was fortunate enough to feel pretty good throughout the whole thing and not have any setbacks, I think it'd be more peace of mind to get out there, make a few starts, hopefully every fifth day, and then you can treat it a little bit more like a normal offseason," deGrom recently told reporters. 

"I feel like if I don't get out there, I'm almost gonna feel like I'm in rehab mode for almost two years, whereas if I get out there and pitch and am able to do it and recover well, then I can prepare for the next season like I normally do," deGrom said.

When he's healthy, deGrom is one of the most dominant pitchers in the history of the game. Over the course of his career, he's won two Cy Young awards and an ERA title. He hasn't thrown more than 100 innings in a season since 2019, whether it be because of injuries or the shortened Covid season.

deGrom will always be one of the biggest "what if? stories in baseball, but for now, it's great to see him back out on the MLB mound.