ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — This anticipated pitchers' duel fully lived up to expectations, with two-time Cy Young Award winner Jacob deGrom getting the win for the Texas Rangers over the blossoming Houston Astros standout who is 10 years younger and threw his first career complete game.
Even before the Rangers won 1-0, manager Bruce Bochy talked about how deGrom will go down as one of the best pitchers ever in the game. He also said Hunter Brown was getting established as one of the best with what he has done over the last year for the Astros.
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Houston Astros starting pitcher Hunter Brown throws during the first inning of a baseball game against the Colorado Rockies, Thursday, May 15, 2025, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/LM Otero)
Texas Rangers starting pitcher Jacob deGrom, right, reaches out to teammate catcher Jonah Heim after the final out ending the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Houston Astros, Thursday, May 15, 2025, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/LM Otero)
Houston Astros starting pitcher Hunter Brown throws during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Texas Rangers, Thursday, May 15, 2025, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/LM Otero)
Texas Rangers starting pitcher Jacob deGrom watches a hit ball go foul during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Houston Astros, Thursday, May 15, 2025, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/LM Otero)
“Everything we thought this game would be, runs would be at a premium,” Bochy said. “I didn't know it'd be one.”
Jake Burger led off the sixth with a homer and Texas beat the Astros on Thursday night in the opener of a four-game series.
The 36-year-old deGrom (4-1), who missed most of the past two seasons after joining Texas because of Tommy John surgery, struck out seven over eight innings and walked just one. The right-hander threw 69 of his 96 pitches for strikes.
His first career start against Houston, on the 11th anniversary of his big league debut with the Mets, was his longest start since a shutout for New York against Washington on April 23, 2021.
“The goal is just to try to take the ball as much as I can, try to stay out on the field, do what I can in between to get ready for the next one.” deGrom said. “You miss that much time, you really miss this game. ... Being able to come back and pitch some (late) last year, that gave me a little peace of mind going into this season. So I was able to prepare well this offseason and try to go out there as many times as they let me.”
Brown (6-2) entered the game tied for the major league lead with wins. He struck out nine without a walk in a 91-pitch effort, throwing 65 strikes. He retired the first 12 batters before Adolis García lined a sharp double to left to start the fifth, the inning before Burger went deep.
“They both know it’s a pitchers' duel and sometimes in a pitchers' duel, one pitch sometimes is all it takes. That’s what happened in today’s game," Astros manager Joe Espada said.
“That one just stinks, you know? You want to come out on top of those games and it didn’t fall our way," Brown said. "There’s a handful of pitches throughout the course of the game that got foul balls or guys popped them up or hit a groundball. (Burger) was able to put a really good swing on it and make us pay for it.”
Brown had gone 6-0 in seven starts since losing his season debut in a 3-1 loss to the Mets. Over exactly a year, since May 15, 2024, Brown is 17-7 with 26 quality starts and a 2.18 ERA — only Paul Skenes has a better ERA in that span.
For deGrom, he has a 1.49 ERA over his last six starts.
He got plenty of help from his defense in the latest one. Rangers right fielder García made a sliding catch of a sinking liner by Mauricio Dubón for the final out of the seventh when Houston had a runner at second base. García also had another sliding catch near the line after running a long way to open the fourth, and center fielder Evan Carter had a nice running catch against Jake Meyers to start the fifth.
“Probably my defense behind me,” deGrom responded when asked what allowed him to have the longest of his 18 starts for Texas since signing a $185 million, five-year contract in December 2022.
“He's one of the best ever in this game," Bochy said. “He’s just incredible with the stuff, his command and everything, and his competitive nature.”
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Houston Astros starting pitcher Hunter Brown throws during the first inning of a baseball game against the Colorado Rockies, Thursday, May 15, 2025, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/LM Otero)
Texas Rangers starting pitcher Jacob deGrom, right, reaches out to teammate catcher Jonah Heim after the final out ending the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Houston Astros, Thursday, May 15, 2025, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/LM Otero)
Houston Astros starting pitcher Hunter Brown throws during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Texas Rangers, Thursday, May 15, 2025, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/LM Otero)
Texas Rangers starting pitcher Jacob deGrom watches a hit ball go foul during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Houston Astros, Thursday, May 15, 2025, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/LM Otero)
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iranians could call abroad on mobile phones Tuesday for the first time since communications were halted during a crackdown on nationwide protests in which activists said at least 646 people have been killed.
Several people in Tehran were able to call The Associated Press and speak to a journalist there. The AP bureau in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, was unable to call those numbers back. The witnesses said SMS text messaging still was down and that internet users in Iran could connect to government-approved websites locally but nothing abroad.
The witnesses gave a brief glimpse into life on the streets of the Iranian capital over the four and a half days of being cut off from the world. They described seeing a heavy security presence in central Tehran.
Anti-riot police officers, wearing helmets and body armor, carried batons, shields, shotguns and tear gas launchers. They stood watch at major intersections. Nearby, the witnesses saw members of the Revolutionary Guard's all-volunteer Basij force, who similarly carried firearms and batons. Security officials in plainclothes were visible in public spaces as well.
Several banks and government offices were burned during the unrest, they said. ATMs had been smashed and banks struggled to complete transactions without the internet, the witnesses added.
However, shops were open, though there was little foot traffic in the capital. Tehran's Grand Bazaar, where the demonstrations began Dec. 28, was to open Tuesday. However, a witness described speaking to multiple shopkeepers who said the security forces ordered them to reopen no matter what. Iranian state media had not acknowledged that order.
The witnesses spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisal.
Many remain concerned about a possible military strike by the U.S., even as President Donald Trump has said Iran wants to negotiate with Washington.
“My customers talk about Trump’s reaction while wondering if he plans a military strike against the Islamic Republic,” said shopkeeper Mahmoud, who gave just his first name out of concerns for his safety. “I don’t expect Trump or any other foreign country cares about the interests of Iranians.”
Reza, a taxi driver who also gave just his first name, said protests also remain front of mind for many.
“People — particularly young ones — are hopeless but they talk about continuing the protests," he said.
Meanwhile, it appeared that security service personnel were searching for Starlink terminals as people in northern Tehran reported authorities raiding apartment buildings with satellite dishes. While satellite television dishes are illegal, many in the capital have them in their homes and officials broadly had given up on enforcing the law in recent years.
On the streets, people also could be seen challenging plainclothes security officials, who were stopping passersby at random.
State television also read a statement about mortuary and morgue services being free — a signal some likely charged high fees for the release of bodies amid the crackdown.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, speaking to the Qatar-funded satellite news network Al Jazeera in an interview aired Monday night, said he continued to communicate with U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff.
The communication “continued before and after the protests and are still ongoing," Araghchi said. However, “Washington’s proposed ideas and threats against our country are incompatible.”
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Iran’s public rhetoric diverges from the private messaging the administration has received from Tehran in recent days.
“I think the president has an interest in exploring those messages,” Leavitt said. “However, with that said, the president has shown he’s unafraid to use military options if and when he deems necessary, and nobody knows that better than Iran.”
Meanwhile, pro-government demonstrators flooded the streets Monday in support of the theocracy, a show of force after days of protests directly challenging the rule of 86-year-old Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Iranian state television aired chants from the crowd, which appeared to number in the tens of thousands, who shouted “Death to America!” and “Death to Israel!”
Others cried out, “Death to the enemies of God!” Iran’s attorney general has warned that anyone taking part in protests will be considered an “enemy of God,” a death-penalty charge.
Trump announced Monday that countries doing business with Iran will face 25% tariffs from the United States. Trump announced the tariffs in a social media posting, saying they would be “effective immediately.”
It was action against Iran for the protest crackdown from Trump, who believes exacting tariffs can be a useful tool in prodding friends and foes on the global stage to bend to his will.
Brazil, China, Russia, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates are among economies that do business with Tehran.
Trump said Sunday that his administration was in talks to set up a meeting with Tehran, but cautioned that he may have to act first as reports of the death toll in Iran mount and the government continues to arrest protesters.
“I think they’re tired of being beat up by the United States,” Trump said. “Iran wants to negotiate.”
Iran, through the country’s parliamentary speaker, warned Sunday that the U.S. military and Israel would be “legitimate targets” if Washington uses force to protect demonstrators.
More than 10,700 people also have been detained over the two weeks of protests, said the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency, which has been accurate in previous unrest in recent years and gave the latest death toll early Tuesday. It relies on supporters in Iran crosschecking information. It said 512 of the dead were protesters and 134 were security force members.
With the internet down in Iran, gauging the demonstrations from abroad has grown more difficult. The Associated Press has been unable to independently assess the toll. Iran’s government hasn’t offered overall casualty figures.
This frame grab from videos taken between Jan. 9 and Jan. 11, 2026, and circulating on social media purportedly shows images from a morgue with dozens of bodies and mourners after crackdown on the outskirts of Iran's capital, in Kahrizak, Tehran Province. (UGC via AP)
A picture of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is set alight by protesters outside the Iranian Embassy in London, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)
In this frame grab from footage circulating on social media shows protesters dancing and cheering around a bonfire as they take to the streets despite an intensifying crackdown as the Islamic Republic remains cut off from the rest of the world, in Tehran, Iran, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026.(UGC via AP)
In this frame grab from footage circulating on social media from Iran showed protesters once again taking to the streets of Tehran despite an intensifying crackdown as the Islamic Republic remains cut off from the rest of the world in Tehran, Iran, Saturday Jan. 10, 2026. (UGC via AP)
FILE - Protesters march on a bridge in Tehran, Iran, on Dec. 29, 2025. (Fars News Agency via AP, File)
