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ARLINGTON, Texas — Jacob deGrom had a start like no other he has ever had in the major leagues. The two-time Cy Young Award winner didn’t strike out a batter for the first time in his career.

“I actually didn’t know that. I heard it when I walked inside, but they were aggressive early,” deGrom said after going 5⅓ innings for the Texas Rangers in his 229th career game, a 2-1 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays on Monday.

According to Elias Sports Bureau research, deGrom’s 228 career games with a strikeout to start his career marked the 10th-longest streak by any pitcher since the mound was moved to its current distance in 1893. The only active players with longer such streaks are Aaron Nola (277) and Zack Wheeler (270). Dwight Gooden’s streak of 349 consecutive appearances with a strikeout to start his career is the longest such streak over that span.

It was the first loss in the past seven starts for the 36-year-old deGrom (4-2), who has made 11 starts overall this season after missing most of the past two years following his second Tommy John surgery.

Daulton Varsho hit a solo homer in the first inning, and the only other run deGrom gave up came on a sacrifice fly. He gave up five hits and walked two before manager Bruce Bochy pulled him in the sixth after 81 pitches.

“They were putting a lot of balls in play early. So I was like, oh man, I might be able to go deep in this game … let’s see how deep I can go in this and try to keep them off the board,” deGrom said. “Fighting myself, started yanking the ball, walked a couple guys, just wasn’t very efficient.”

Meanwhile, Blue Jays starter Kevin Gausman threw 72 of his 96 pitches for strikes — with first-pitch strikes to 26 of the 29 batters he faced for a career-high 89.7%. His first 14 pitches were strikes, and he needed only 12 of those to get through the first two innings.

Gausman (5-4) struck out six in eight innings, with all of his punchouts coming after Wyatt Langford‘s one-out homer in the fourth. Two of the strikeouts came when the right-hander retired three consecutive batters after Texas opened the fifth with back-to-back bloop singles.

“We got some good jam shots early in the game,” Gausman said. “Being able to pound those guys so early in the game in, it opened up for them chasing later in the game.”

As for pulling deGrom in a 2-1 game, Bochy said he wanted to lighten the load on a pitcher who threw 103 pitches over seven innings against the New York Yankees last Wednesday and at least 90 pitches in each of his two starts before that.

“He’s been working pretty hard,” Bochy said. “It’s what we thought this game would be, a tight ballgame, two really, really good pitchers going out there. They came out on the good end. … Jacob was good, their guy was really good.”

DeGrom has 1,728 career strikeouts, and entered Monday’s game with a 30.9% career strikeout rate. He had multiple strikeouts in all but one of his previous 228 starts, at Philadelphia on Sept. 16, 2020, when he had only one strikeout before exiting after two innings because of a right hamstring spasm. That was 10 days after he struck out 12 Phillies in a game.

There are no physical issues this time, and deGrom said he hasn’t even thought about his workload — 63⅓ innings through 11 starts. He threw only 64⅓ innings during his final season with the New York Mets in 2022, when he didn’t make his first big league start until Aug. 2 after being shut down late in spring training because of a stress reaction in his right scapula.

The right-hander threw only 41 innings combined the past two seasons after signing a $185 million, five-year contract with Texas in free agency.

“I feel good. I was just fighting myself today, flying open,” deGrom said. “It’s something I’ve been working on almost every start. And today, it kind of took a step in the wrong direction. So I wasn’t able to really locate down and pitch off that with my slider.”

ESPN Research and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Johnson, 2-time Cup winner with Lightning, retires

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Johnson, 2-time Cup winner with Lightning, retires

Tyler Johnson has announced his retirement after playing 13 NHL seasons and winning the Stanley Cup twice with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Johnson called it a career in a lengthy message posted on social media Monday. Johnson had battled injuries in recent years and is set to turn 35 on July 29.

“As a short kid from a small town, I saw my chances of playing in the NHL as very slim,” Johnson wrote on Instagram. “But my family — my parents, Ken and Debbie, and my grandparents — believed in me when doubt clouded my mind. Their unwavering faith turned that dream into reality.”

Listed at 5-foot-8 and 191 pounds, Johnson won at just about ever level, capturing the Western Hockey League and Memorial Cup championships in 2008 with his hometown Spokane Chiefs and the Calder Cup championship with Norfolk of the American Hockey League in 2012.

The NHL brought more success, as he skated in 863 regular-season and playoff games since debuting in the league in 2013, putting up 498 points. Johnson was part of the Lightning’s core when they reached the final in 2015 and helped them hoist the Cup back to back in 2020 and ’21.

Johnson finished with Chicago, playing three seasons with the Blackhawks, and Boston, signing with the Bruins early last season following his training camp tryout.

“After a lifetime devoted to hockey, I’m ready for what’s next,” Johnson said. “This moment is bittersweet, but I leave the game with no regrets.”

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‘Gritty’ McBain secures 5-year deal from Mammoth

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'Gritty' McBain secures 5-year deal from Mammoth

SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Mammoth re-signed center Jack McBain to a five-year contract worth $21.25 million on Monday.

McBain will count $4.25 million against the salary cap through the 2029-30 NHL season, which was announced a little more than 24 hours since the team elected salary arbitration with the restricted free agent forward.

“He is a big, strong, physical player who competes hard on a nightly basis and brings a gritty toughness to our group,” general manager Bill Armstrong said. “Jack is an important part of the championship-caliber team we are building, and we look forward to having him back on our roster for the foreseeable future.”

McBain, 25, is coming off setting a career high with 27 points and playing all 82 games. He was one of six players to skate in every game of the organization’s first season in Salt Lake City.

“Jack’s versatility as a player, his care for his teammates and his demonstrated willingness to do whatever it takes to win, are all critical elements to our future team success,” president of hockey operations Chris Armstrong said.

McBain has 82 points in 241 games with the franchise, which moved to Utah from Arizona. Since debuting in April 2022, he ranks third in the league with 832 hits.

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‘Workhorse’ York nets five-year deal from Flyers

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'Workhorse' York nets five-year deal from Flyers

Cam York and the Philadelphia Flyers agreed to terms Monday on a five-year contract worth $25.75 million, with re-signing the restricted free agent defenseman completing perhaps the team’s last important piece of offseason business.

York, 25, will count $5.15 million against the salary cap through the 2029-30 NHL season. That price could turn out to be a bargain with the upper limit rising from $88 million this past season to $113.5 million by 2027-28.

“Cam has been a workhorse for our team over the last few seasons,” general manager Danny Briere said. “We’re excited by his development and look forward to his continued growth and emergence as a young leader within our group.”

The Flyers are trying to shift from rebuilding to contending, and York was the final player on the roster without a contract. They acquired Trevor Zegras in a trade from Anaheim last month and signed fellow center Christian Dvorak and backup goaltender Dan Vladar on the first day of free agency.

York, the 14th pick in the 2019 draft, has skated nearly 21 minutes a game so far in his pro career, all with Philadelphia. He has 77 points in 235 games for the Flyers, who have not made the playoffs since 2020.

“I believe in this team, and I love the direction we are heading,” York said. “I couldn’t be more excited to continue this journey and build something special together.”

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