#Jacob deGrom feeling the Mets pressure in shortened season

Jacob deGrom knows a repeat of last season won’t be good enough. Not with a 60-game schedule. He can’t afford to get off to a slow start again.

“I don’t like giving up runs and I lost some sleep over some starts [from early last year],” he said on Tuesday, referring to a three-start stretch when he allowed 14 earned runs in 13 innings and suffered three straight losses. “Definitely in a 60-game [season], you’re going to feel a little bit more pressure. You only get so many times out there and you feel like you need to be on your game every time.”

DeGrom had enough time to rebound and win his second straight Cy Young Award. This year, that obviously won’t be the case. There was brief concern that deGrom wouldn’t be able to start the Mets’ shortened season against the Braves on time, when back tightness limited him to one inning in an intrasquad game. He rebounded quickly, throwing 60 pitches on Sunday in a simulated game and expects to pitch the franchise’s opener for the second straight year. DeGrom estimated he would be limited to 85-95 pitches on Friday, though it will also depend on how he’s feeling. Most importantly, the back issue seems to be gone.

“I would say it’s totally in the past,” he said. “The other day felt really good. … Everything’s in line.”

The 32-year-old right-hander will be vying to be the first pitcher to win three straight NL Cy Young awards since Randy Johnson won four straight from 1999-2002. It’s one of his goals, to win another Cy Young, and it is on his mind, since he’s been asked about it already multiple times.

A stellar season is needed from him. The support behind him in the rotation isn’t as strong as in years past, with Zack Wheeler now pitching for the Phillies and Noah Syndergaard out for the season following Tommy John surgery. That, along with a 60-game season, only increases the importance of each one of his outings, even if deGrom has always treated his starts with utmost importance.

“I feel like I put a lot of pressure on myself to go out there and perform,” he said. “Like I’ve said, I’ve lost a lot of sleep over some games, dwelling on them, thinking what I could’ve done different. It’s just kind of the way I approach things. I’ve kind of put pressure on myself to go out there and perform. When that doesn’t happen, I’m pretty disappointed with that. Having that mindset throughout my career has kind of helped me to this point.”

There really is nothing that could prepare him for this season, though. It will be unlike any other. There won’t be fans in the seats, at least at the outset, and the roar from the crowd will be artificial.

He will throw his first pitch that counts in the third week of July. But when he toes the rubber late Friday afternoon, his mindset will be the same: Retire everyone who steps to the plate.

Mets legend David Wright and Howie Rose will be on the Amazin’ But True podcast Thursday.