They stuck around afterward, most of their feet rooted to the concrete, some on tiptoes craning for a better look. A few minutes earlier, Jacob deGrom had thrown the final pitch of the best season of his life — one of the best seasons, by some measures, of any pitcher in modern Major League history. He walked off the mound to a standing ovation and to “M-V-P!” chants from fans who, at this point, are looking even beyond the National League Cy Young Award. In the home dugout, Dominic Smith turned to David Wright and said he felt chills.
So did many who stuck around to listen to deGrom, lingering on the field in a blue hooded sweatshirt, try to find words for what perhaps only numbers can describe. In beating the Braves, 3-0, on Wednesday at Citi Field, deGrom completed a season in which he posted the sixth-lowest ERA, 1.70, of any qualified pitcher since Major League Baseball lowered the mound to its current height in 1969. He tallied 269 strikeouts, fourth-most in Mets history, and a single-season record 24 consecutive quality starts.
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