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The Texas Rangers, high off a playoff win, boarded a late-night flight from Baltimore to Dallas. The club had just taken a commanding 2-0 lead over the Orioles in the American League Division Series. The Rangers were one win away from advancing to the franchise's first ALCS since 2011. But, first, there was an unforgettable three-hour flight standing in their way.

Several players played cards in the back of the plane, a common pastime for those who ply their craft in America's pastime. Max Scherzer, who was dealing with a stomach bug, was one of those players. This, Jacob deGrom decided, provided the perfect opportunity to pull off an epic prank. DeGrom discreetly asked the flight assistant, Missy, to tell Scherzer to wear his mask if he's going to play cards so that no one else would get sick. Missy, per deGrom's direction, told Scherzer the request was coming from the Rangers manager, Bruce Bochy.

"He was probably cussing me out," Bochy laughed. "He actually wore it. He was respectful with everything. He put it on."

"He wore it the whole freaking flight," said a teammate, who was only comfortable speaking about this very serious prank on the condition of anonymity. "Three hours. It was hysterical. Whole flight he's wearing it. We're all cracking up. He had no idea. No idea."

The following day, the Rangers held a workout at Globe Life Field. DeGrom told Bochy about the prank he'd pulled off, but the horseplay wasn't over yet. He asked the skipper to add another layer to the joke by being a part of it. So Bochy walked up to Scherzer at the team workout.

"What the hell were you wearing a mask for?" Bochy asked. Scherzer responded, "You told me to wear it." Then Bochy lied and said he was anti-mask. "I don't know what you're talking about," the manager replied, faking his confusion well enough to merit Oscar consideration.

For Scherzer, the mystery of who pulled off the mask prank went on for days. Finally, more than a week later, players told Scherzer that deGrom was behind the joke.

"He's just a goofball," teammate Will Smith said of deGrom. "Florida redneck, goofball. He likes to hunt. He's fun. The Max prank is his best one so far. We finally told him. Max gave deGrom his props. He said, ‘That's one of the best ones you've pulled off.' DeGrom got him pretty good."

That clever, slightly wicked, prank was just one of many jokes deGrom has pulled off this year with Texas. It's the star pitcher's own way of contributing to the Rangers' historic World Series run, even though deGrom hasn't pitched since June following his second career Tommy John surgery. Because deGrom can't torture opposing hitters, he teases his teammates instead.

"Obviously, I wish I was out there," deGrom told FOX Sports after Texas edged Arizona in Game 3 of the World Series. "But now it's about these guys and what they're doing. It's very cool."