Jacob deGrom cuts his hair and suddenly everyone forgets about him.
MLB Network rolled out their list of the top 10 starting pitchers in baseball on Saturday on their annual "Top 10 Right Now!" program. Mets' right-hander Noah Syndergaard checked in at No. 7 on the list, right in between San Francisco Giants' ace Madison Bumgarner and Cleveland Indians' hurler Carlos Carrasco, one of two pitchers on the list coached by new Mets' manager Mickey Callaway (AL Cy Young Award winner Corey Kluber was ranked No. 2).
However, there was a notable omission: deGrom.
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According to the network release, the rankings are created by taking into account "player performance over the last two seasons, a number of offensive and defensive metrics, both advanced Statcast data and traditional numbers, and expert analysis by the MLB Network research team."
Syndergaard put up strong numbers last season and his stuff was arguably among the nastiest in baseball, but he only pitched 30 1/3 innings. Taking into account his 2016 season and the advanced metrics, there's no doubt that Syndergaard belongs in the rankings.
DeGrom's 2016 season was cut short but not nearly as short as Syndergaard's was last year. The right-hander was one of just two pitchers on the Mets' Opening Day roster that stayed on the roster all season. Left-handed reliever Jerry Blevins and deGrom both avoided the disabled list and while a few others did too, they couldn't avoid demotions.
He went through one rough stretch in May, which probably cost him a trip to the All-Star game and some Cy Young votes. But after finding success with a two-bullpen system, he was remarkably consistent the rest of the season, dominating hitters through a stretch of eight straight wins through June and July.
The problem is that deGrom was just barely edged out. It's a strong list. Justin Verlander turned in some historic postseason performances and he was only ranked No. 9. But deGrom poised for a big year, and with the tutelage of Callaway and Eiland, he could find himself high up on that list next year.
Abbey Mastracco may be reached at amastracco@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @abbeymastracco. Find NJ.com on Facebook.