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Rangers' Jacob deGrom Reacts to CitiField Return After Delivering Painful Blow to Mets

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Rex Villas | Last updated Sep 12, 2025 11:21 PM ET

Jacob deGrom had a triumphant return to his old stomping grounds. Making his first appearance at CitiField since 2002, deGrom delivered the goods for the Texas Rangers, as he started in the series opener against the New York Mets on Friday night.

A two-time Cy Young Award winner, the 37-year-old deGrom got a warm welcome from the Mets, who played a tribute video with his old warmup song, Lynard Skynard's "Simple Man," playing in the background. deGrom acknowledged the gesture from the home team, but it was all business for him once he stepped on the mound.

The Rangers' offense gave deGrom ample run support right away, with Texas already leading 6-0 when he got to the mound in the bottom of the first inning.

With that big cushion behind him, deGrom pitched confidently against the Mets, finishing the contest with three earned runs on four hits with two strikeouts through seven innings. Relievers Robert Garcia and Phil Maton got the job done the rest of the way, as Texas notched an 8-3 win, the Rangers' fifth in a row.

"It was really cool," deGrom told Rangers reporter Laura Stickells about the video the Mets played before the game."Like I said before, this is where it all started. And then coming back here, I thought it was going to be a very special day. So thankful to the Mets for playing that. And you know, like I said, these fans were great to me when I was here. And you know, that was a really nice thing they did."

deGrom also said he relished pitching in front of Mets fans again.

"It means a lot," deGrom added. "Like I said, you know, the fans were great to me tonight. They were great to me when I was here. So I always enjoyed taking them out in front of this crowd. So tonight was just as special."

With their win, the Rangers improved to 78-70 and stayed in the hunt for not just a Wild Card ticket in the American League but for the top spot in the AL West. They are currently third in the division, just two games behind the leading Houston Astros.

As for the Mets, their loss to the Rangers further hurt their chances to clinch a playoff berth. They are now just a game ahead of the San Francisco Giants and the Cincinnati Reds for the final Wild Card spot in the National League.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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