(Photo credit: John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images)

Jacob deGrom hasn't appeared on the Citi Field mound since Oct. 8, 2022, when he helped extend the New York Mets' season by winning Game 2 of a National League wild-card series.

One thousand and seventy days later, deGrom will finally make his return to Citi Field and try to nudge the Mets closer to completing one of the all-time biggest collapses.

deGrom is slated to pitch as a visitor in Queens for the first time Friday night, when he takes the mound for the Texas Rangers in the opener of a three-game interleague series with wild-card implications in both leagues.

A four-time All-Star with the Mets, deGrom (11-7, 2.78 ERA) is scheduled to oppose fellow right-hander Jonah Tong (1-1, 4.09), a rookie who will make his third career start.

The Rangers were off Thursday after they completed a three-game sweep of the visiting Milwaukee Brewers on Wednesday, when Jake Burger homered twice in a 6-3 victory. The Mets continued their freefall Thursday, when they squandered a four-run first-inning lead as the host Philadelphia Phillies completed a four-game sweep with a 6-4 win.

The loss was the sixth straight for the Mets (76-71), who didn't have a baserunner after the first inning as their lead over the idle San Francisco Giants and Cincinnati Reds in the race for the final NL wild-card spot fell to 1 1/2 games.

The skid is part of a three-month tailspin for the Mets, who reached the NL Championship Series last year and had the best record in the majors at 45-24 through June 12. But they are just 31-47 since -- the fourth-worst mark in the sport ahead of only the last-place Colorado Rockies and Washington Nationals as well as the Minnesota Twins.

'We've got to play better -- as simple as that,' said Mets left-hander David Peterson, who gave up three runs in five innings Thursday night. 'I think that we've seen what this group can do. We've got 15 (games) left and we've got to take care of business. Past is the past. We've got to let it go.'

deGrom returns to New York with a compelling back story as well as a pivotal task in the present for the Rangers (77-70), who lead the majors with a 14-4 record since Aug. 22. The surge has pulled Texas, which was 5 1/2 games out of the last AL wild-card spot through Aug. 21, within two games of the Houston Astros and Seattle Mariners, who are tied for the AL West lead as well as the last wild-card spot.

'All of these games for us are very important,' deGrom said. 'Same for them with the spot that they're in. It's going to be fun. We've got to win, they've got to win. So it's going to be a playoff atmosphere.'

The Rangers have benefited all season from a resurgent deGrom, who has made 27 starts and thrown 155 2/3 innings after combining for just 35 starts and 197 1/3 innings from 2021-24.

deGrom, who was drafted by the Mets in 2010, was the 2014 NL Rookie of the Year and won back-to-back Cy Young Awards in 2018-19. He finished third in the balloting during the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign before battling elbow and shoulder injuries the next two seasons.

He signed a five-year, $185 million free-agent deal with the Rangers on Dec. 2, 2022, but underwent his second Tommy John surgery about six months later.

'With what he did for the Mets, how much time he spent there, I'm sure he's probably going to have some memories and emotions even before he pitches,' Rangers manager Bruce Bochy said. 'This is the first time he's been back. I know there has to be some excitement for him.'

deGrom, an AL All-Star this year, and Tong both lost their most recent starts last Saturday. deGrom gave up three runs over 5 1/3 innings as the Rangers fell to the Astros 11-0. Tong allowed four runs in six innings in the Mets' 6-3 loss to the Reds.

--Field Level Media