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Mets rookie Jacob deGrom strikes out first eight batters, ties modern record

Mike Oz

New York Mets pitcher Jacob deGrom has turned into a legitimate National League Rookie of the Year candidate over the past couple months. While he may or may not win the award, deGrom has at least etched his name into the Major League Baseball record books.

In Monday's game against the Miami Marlins, deGrom struck out the first eight batters he faced, tying Jim Deshaies' modern record. Deshaies struck out eight straight in 1986, pitching for the Houston Astros.

It looked like deGrom might break Deshaies' record, as Marlins pitcher Jarred Cosart stepped to the plate in the bottom of the third inning. But Cosart singled into right field, the opposing pitcher of all people, the guy you might expect to strike out.

deGrom, 26, has been a bright spot this season for the Mets, who called him up in May. He was 8-6 with a 2.62 ERA in 20 starts, heading into Monday's game. Including his performance Monday night, deGrom has struck out eight or more batters in six times.

(USA TODAY Sports )
(USA TODAY Sports )

A stellar July put deGrom into ROY conversation. In five starts, he went 4-1 with a 1.39 ERA. Billy Hamilton has been the favorite most of the season, but deGrom's late-season splendor has helped make him a serious candidate. Since July 1, he's 7-2 with a 1.86 ERA.

deGrom continued to pile on the Ks in the fourth and fifth innings Monday. He finished with 13, which for a moment made us wonder if he'd threaten the record for a nine-inning game. Roger Clemens, Kerry Wood and Randy Johnson have all struck out 20. The most in a single game this season is 15. But deGrom didn't end up matching even that. He was chased from the game after seven innings. He gave up six hits and three runs. The Mets bullpen, however, blew a 5-3 lead in the eighth and the Marlins eventually won 6-5.

In news unrelated possibly related definitely related to deGrom's success Monday night: Mr. Met dressed up in a scraggily Jacob deGrom wig before the game.

Now he'll have to do it every time deGrom pitches. Them's the rules.

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Mike Oz is an editor for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at mikeozstew@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!