SEATTLE – Jacob deGrom, winner of two Cy Young Awards and owner of the best stuff of this generation, admitted Thursday that he was “nervous” about his impending return to the mound after a 14-month absence.

Nervous, Jacob? You mean excited?

“Yes, I’m excited,” he said. “But I’m also nervous. I absolutely can’t stand the fear of failure.”

Imagine how Kumar Rocker must have felt. Rocker was just a few hours away from making what was probably the most anticipated pitching debut of any Ranger in the last 30 years. Maybe the last 50. David Clyde’s debut, which came less than a month after his 1973 draft, caused a traffic jam on the old turnpike. But that was pure theater, a failing franchise that needed to sell a few tickets. It worked. At the expense of Clyde’s future career.

This is not a gimmick.

FYI: Rocker didn’t seem nervous at the time. He was sitting at his locker across from the visitors’ locker room in a T-shirt, shorts, and flip-flops. A few minutes later, he got up, walked onto the field, still in flip-flops, and spent about 30 minutes sitting on the railing on the left field foul line, talking to bullpen catcher Chase Casali, then listening to some silly jokes from pitching coach Mike Maddux (and even laughing) and getting warm fist bumps from his teammates before the start of a come-from-behind game against Seattle, which the Rangers eventually came from behind to win 5-4.

He didn’t seem nervous at the start of the game, either. Or after Victor Robles hit a 96-mph single through the box on the first pitch of the game. Or, for that matter, after Julio Rodriguez followed up with a slider single through the right side two pitches later. No. He didn’t seem fazed by it in the slightest.

Rocker just kept throwing strikes, particularly with a sharp slider that the Mariners couldn’t get off. Now, on the surface, that doesn’t seem like such a big deal considering the Mariners have already fired their hitting instructor twice this year and are on pace to have the second-most strikeouts by a team in MLB history, which, well, would eclipse the 2023 Mariners. That disclaimer aside, not to get your pulse racing too much, yes, the slider was still stunning.

It was enough to get 13 swings and misses in his four innings. He ran out of pitches, but not before throwing out JP Crawford on his 74th pitch of the night – a slider – to end the fourth inning. The only blemish was that veteran Justin Turner timed a full-count fastball correctly and hit it to center with one out in the fourth inning. And you could argue that if home plate umpire Rob Drake had been on the hunt for strikes, he would have called Turner sooner. He let the opportunity slip away twice. Welcome to the major leagues, rookie.

In fact, Rocker managed seven strikeouts in his four innings, making him the fourth-best Ranger in his major league debut. Just behind Clyde and Paul Mirabella and tied with Glen Otto and Justin Grimm. The list of names is just for context. And perhaps also as a small transition.

First, it’s important to note that the Rangers are not an organization with a stellar pitching history. Second, debut results are not necessarily indicative of a career. Look, perhaps the best debut in Rangers history was that of Brian Sikorski, who pitched seven scoreless innings on one day in 2000 at Yankee Stadium. He would go on to win three more games in his career. He spent more time in the Rangers organization as a scout than as a pitcher over the last decade.

What’s important is this: Rocker threw strikes, kept his cool when he got into trouble early, showed real swing-and-miss performance and the ability to pitch even when his fastball wasn’t at its peak.

The first tenet of the Rangers’ pitching mantra is “get ahead.” He threw first-pitch strikes to 10 of the first 13 batters he faced, resulting in five of his seven strikeouts. When he allowed two runners in the first inning and fell behind third-place batter Cal Raleigh, 2-0, he didn’t flinch. And he didn’t flinch when he allowed two batters to walk in the third. Came back and got Randy Arozarena to end the threat with perhaps his best fastball of the night.

There’s still a lot left to show. Rocker has faced a single batter in a game just three times since returning from elbow surgery last May. His 74-pitch appearance was the longest since his return.

For a first-round pick, however, it was everything the Rangers could have wanted: top rotation qualities and balance, and that’s what the club banked on when it surprised most experts by taking Rocker third in the 2022 draft, a year after a dispute over his shoulder led to a failed fitness test with the New York Mets.

That could be the theme of the weekend. The loss of deGrom and Rocker to the Mets is at the heart of the Rangers’ future.

“This is a great weekend for our franchise,” GM Chris Young said before the game. “Obviously we get Jacob and Max (Scherzer) back on two consecutive days and then our top draft pick from a few years ago makes his debut. It’s not just a September debut. He’s flown through the minor leagues based on his performance and has earned a chance to pitch in the major leagues.”

“Innings are one thing, but experience is another. And this player has tremendous amateur experience. He may not have logged innings on the mound, but he has gained experience and wisdom through his rehab and the work he’s done. I certainly wouldn’t call him an immature, unfinished player. He’s a very mature, balanced player who knows exactly what he needs to do to be successful.”

On Thursday it certainly seemed that way.

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