NEW YORK – Jacob deGrom came out prematurely for the second straight start with an arm injury, this time after three perfect innings with a sore shoulder, and the New York Mets bullpen thrust out his chest to finish the job. of three hits in Wednesday’s 6-3 win over the Chicago Cubs.
One start after leaving the San Diego game with right arm flexor tendonitis, deGrom went straight into the dugout tunnel after the third inning against the Cubs. The team announced shortly after that the pitcher had shoulder problems.
DeGrom made a look of apparent annoyance after a pitch to Eric Sogard in the third inning. He threw 51 pitches, the last of which was a 99 mph fastball to strike out Robert Stock, his eighth chocolate in nine batters.
DeGrom said initial tests ruled out a serious problem, but he plans to run additional tests on Thursday.
The right-hander lowered his ERA to 0.54, the best in history for a starter after 11 starts. He is the first pitcher since at least 1901 with at least eight strikeouts in three perfect innings to start a game, according to STATS.
He also delighted the fans at Citi Field with an RBI single in the second inning. He has six RBIs this season and has given up just four earned runs.
DeGrom pitched a one-hitter in six scoreless innings on Friday night against the Padres before leaving with a sore flexor. He underwent an MRI the next day that revealed no damage, and went back to his routine.
Sean Reid-Foley (2-0) relieved deGrom and took the win by conceding a run in two innings. Anthony Rizzo ended the perfect game with a one-out homer in the fourth inning.
Kevin Pillar opened the scoring with an RBI double off Stock (0-1) in the second inning and blew the wall in the fifth inning. Dominic Smith hit a solo home run in the third inning and added an RBI ground in the fourth, immediately after Francisco Lindor walked with a bases loaded.
For the Mets, Puerto Ricans Francisco Lindor 3-0 with an RBI; Tomás Nido 4-1 with one scored. The Dominican Jonathan Villar 3-0. Venezuelan Luis Guillorme 3-0 with one scored.
For the Cubs, Venezuelans Rafael Ortega 3-1 with two RBIs and one scored; Willson Contreras 1-0; José Lobatón 3-0. The Puerto Rican Javier Báez 3-0. The Dominican Sergio Alcántara 1-1.
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