Jacob deGrom left the Mets in free agency, swapping the NL East for the AL West after agreeing to a deal with the Rangers. Heading into the offseason, it seemed a foregone conclusion that deGrom would not be returning to New York, but now the 34-year-old has addressed his decision for the first time, via the New York Post.
The two-time Cy Young winner claimed that he was never “100 percent” set on leaving the Mets in free agency, and part of him expected to return to Queens, where he played the first nine seasons of his MLB career.
In the end, deGrom signed a five-year, $185 million deal with Texas, who he indicated moved quickly to secure his services.
"It’s free agency. You sit down and say I could see myself here, I could see myself there," deGrom said. "Texas showed a ton of interest. Things got moving really, really quickly. And I said, I’m going to be a Texas Ranger."
Prior to his new deal with the Rangers, deGrom had been playing under a five-year, $137.5 million contract in New York. The deal was signed in 2019 and included an opt out after the ’22 season, which deGrom triggered this offseason.
The four-time All-Star shot down reports that he wasn't content with that deal, which was largely considered to be below his market value.
"That didn’t bother me, that was ultimately my decision to sign that," deGrom said of the contract. "I saw something about that I was mad about that. I was never mad about that. I went out after I signed that and I tried to give my best every year."
