Jacob DeGrom told reporters that he knew he was going to get his career-high in strike outs after fanning the first two batters he faced. (0:34)

My favorite quote of the offseason was National League MVP Christian Yelich saying in an interview that pitching is so good these days that "every hit feels like a miracle." That's some excellent hyperbole, except in the case of Jacob deGrom, with whom it rings 100 percent true.

The ace of the New York Mets has entered that rarified zone that few pitchers ever reach. I like to call it the Gooden Zone, in honor of Dwight Gooden's 1985 season, in which he went 24-4 with a 1.53 ERA and you were so desperate to catch highlights of his latest masterpiece that you begged your parents to finally pony up and pay for cable TV.

In Wednesday's 6-4 win over the Marlins, deGrom fanned a career-high 14 batters in seven scoreless innings:

Do we even need to ask who the Amazin' Met of the game is? #MetsWin pic.twitter.com/nUfnohtQc3 — New York Mets (@Mets) April 4, 2019

Oh, he also homered. In his first two starts, deGrom hasn't allowed a run and has 24 strikeouts in 13 innings. He's just the third pitcher to begin his season with two scoreless starts and double-digit strikeouts in both games, joining Nolan Ryan (1978) and Karl Spooner (1954).

(Aside on Karl Spooner: His games came at the end of the season, when he was a September call-up for the Brooklyn Dodgers. He threw a three-hit, 15-strikeout shutout in his debut and followed that with a four-hit, 12-strikeout shutout. He could have been an all-time great, but he injured his shoulder in spring training of 1955 and lasted just one more season in the majors.)

A week ago, there was a fair debate as to who is the best pitcher in the game. Maybe it is deGrom, coming off his 1.70 ERA and Cy Young season, or maybe it is Max Scherzer or Justin Verlander or Chris Sale or Blake Snell or Corey Kluber. Right now, at this moment in time, it's deGrom. It has to be.

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You like dominance? His ERA the past two seasons is 1.56. His ERA his past 30 starts is 1.40. In those 205 innings, he has allowed eight home runs.

You like consistency? He tied Bob Gibson's major league record with 26 consecutive quality starts and extended his record to 31 consecutive starts allowing three runs or fewer.

You like jaw-dropping, unhittable pitches? He averaged 93.5 mph with his slider, the highest average of his career.