Rangers’ Jacob deGrom to Undergo Second Tommy John Surgery, Aiming to Return Before End of 2024
Sitting atop the AL West at 40-20, the Texas Rangers received disappointing news on Tuesday as right-hander Jacob deGrom will require season-ending Tommy John surgery to repair a torn UCL.
deGrom, inked to a five-year deal worth $185 million in the off-season, hasn’t pitched since Apr. 28th due to what was initially diagnosed as right elbow inflammation. He was transferred to the 60-day IL on Monday after the team announced his recovery would require additional time.
The two-time NL Cy Young Award winner was last seen on the mound when the Rangers visited Detroit last month, where he tossed a bullpen session before returning home for the birth of his third child. Once he returned on Monday, he underwent a scheduled MRI that revealed damage to his right ulnar collateral ligament.
Texas’ front office decided it had no choice but to send deGrom for surgery, which will be performed by team physician Dr. Keith Meister.
Though he’s been through this process before, as the former New York Met underwent his first Tommy John procedure less than a year after he was drafted in the ninth round in 2010, there isn’t any comfort in having to watch from the sidelines for the rest of 2023 and beyond.
“Anytime you get told you’re not gonna be able to be out there for a little while, it’s tough,” deGrom said, fighting through tears. “I went through this before and know what it takes to get back, so that’s the goal. To go out there and rehab the best I can and be around to help any way I can. We’ve got a special group here and to not be able to be out there and help them win, it stinks.”
In most cases, pitchers typically face a 12-18 month recovery timeline post-surgery, meaning there’s a chance deGrom could miss the rest of this year and all of next season. And at 34, returning from such a significant injury likely won’t be an easy task.
Justin Verlander, who underwent TJ surgery in September 2020, proved to be a rare case last season, capturing the AL Cy Young Award while posting a career-best 1.75 ERA during his age-39 campaign. But few have been fortunate enough to repeat that level of success.
deGrom, meanwhile, hopes to remain optimistic about a potential 2024 return that could see him back in a Rangers uniform during the second half of the campaign.
“As I said, it stinks,” deGrom explained. “You want to be out there. It’s just not ideal, but I’m gonna set a goal to try to be back next year towards the end of the year. So I’m gonna work towards that and hopefully we’re in a playoff run next year but the most important thing is this year and these guys that we have. Like I said, it’s a special group and I want to be here rooting them on.”
Injuries, unfortunately, have become a recurring theme for deGrom over these last few seasons, preventing one of baseball’s most dominant arms from completing a full season since 2019.
Following three straight years of at least 200 innings pitched, the veteran righty experienced back and arm flare-ups in 2020 that capped his workload at just 68.0 innings during the COVID-shortened campaign. He also missed the entire second half of 2021 with elbow inflammation.
Last season, after logging a combined 160.0 innings over the previous two years, deGrom was snake-bitten out of the gate by a stress reaction in his right scapula, delaying his debut until early August.
Based on deGrom’s lengthy injury history, it would have been “prohibitively expensive” to insure his lucrative contract, The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal reported in May. Thus, the Rangers chose not to do so.
The 6-foot-4 hurler’s surgery will trigger a clause in his contract that creates a 2028 team option worth $30 million if he finishes among the top five in Cy Young voting during his Rangers tenure or pitches at least 625 total innings. That figure will rise to $37 million if he places in the top five three times or compiles at least 725 innings.
But if deGrom fails to complete those feats, his club option would fall to $20 million for the 2028 season.
“It’s obviously a tough blow for Jacob, and certainly for the Rangers, but we do feel this is what is right for Jacob in his career,” Rangers GM Chris Young said. “We’re confident he’ll make a full recovery and it’s unfortunate the way things have gone but nonetheless, we now have clarity and can move forward and have him back sometime by the end of next season, but no promises on the timetable. “
deGrom is the latest example of this season’s concerning Tommy John epidemic, marking him as the 31st pitcher to undergo the procedure in 2023. And there are still four months remaining in the schedule.
The DeLand, Fla., native made six starts with Texas before landing on the IL, posting a 2.67 ERA and 1.57 FIP with 45 strikeouts across 30.1 innings. He allowed just four walks, earning him a remarkable 35.7 percent strikeout-to-walk rate difference.
When healthy, deGrom has been a legitimate force on the mound, as he led the majors in ERA (2.05), FIP (2.32) and fWAR (16.0) among qualified starters from 2018-19. The superstar flamethrower also finished second in innings pitched (421.0) and fourth in strikeouts (524).
-Thomas Hall
Twitter: @ThomasHall85
Photo: Arturo Pardavila III. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.