PITTSBURGH — With one out in the ninth inning Friday night, Jacob deGrom walked off the mound for good at PNC Park. The sparse crowd of Mets fans behind the visiting team’s dugout stood and applauded.
A starter pitching that deep into the game might not have seemed like much, but it meant a lot to the Mets, a team once defined by strong pitching but now mired in struggles.
The last time a Mets starter completed eight innings was Noah Syndergaard last Aug. 21. Getting just six innings, regardless of quality, out of a starter had been a difficult proposition this season.