Jake deGrom is taking the mound any minute now against the cubs, with new drama in the mix

By N.S.

DeGrom has lost his slider. For several years, Jacob deGrom has had the best slider in baseball, with the highest velocity (between 92 and 94 mph), and the latest, most dramatic break. However, a couple of starts ago, he lost it. He used to throw the slider about half of the time, especially with two strikes, but now he is increasingly throwing his fastball, change-up, and curve.

For years, de Grom was a two-pitch pitcher—slider and fastball. However, once he gets into the sixth inning these days, he gets fatigued. At first, that would show in his slider flattening out. A couple of games ago, a batter hit a home run against him in the sixth or seventh inning, however, Brandon Nimmo reached over the center-field fence to snatch the ball back. Nimmo didn’t even make a clean catch; the ball hit barely inside the webbing on his pinky, before rolling back into the pocket. That inspired deGrom to again throw a good slider, but it hasn’t been there for him since.

But if there’s one thing about Jake deGrom, it’s in his overcoming of obstacles. Max Scherzer had already influenced him and other Mets starters (e.g., Taijuan Walker) to throw first-pitch curveballs (deGrom had stopped throwing his curveball for years) and now, without a reliable slider, deGrom is throwing more and more fastballs, curve balls, and change-ups.