{"id":655905,"date":"2026-04-01T05:09:18","date_gmt":"2026-04-01T05:09:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/655905\/"},"modified":"2026-04-01T05:09:18","modified_gmt":"2026-04-01T05:09:18","slug":"max-scherzer-conquers-last-years-ghosts-in-26-season-debut","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/655905\/","title":{"rendered":"Max Scherzer conquers last year\u2019s ghosts in \u201926 season debut"},"content":{"rendered":"

TORONTO \u2014 Welcome to season No. 19, Max Scherzer. <\/p>\n

The 41-year-old starter was determined to return to this very spot. He vowed that last fall\u2019s post-season wouldn\u2019t be the last this sport ever saw of him, and return he has. To kick off his 19th season, the eight-time All-Star twirled a gem on the mound, earning a quality start across six innings of one-run ball, allowing just four hits and one walk while striking out four on 83 pitches (56 strikes).<\/p>\n

Scherzer, the ageless, constantly dialled-in bulldog of a pitcher, was back in his office again, doing what he does best \u2014 pitch. But as easy as it is to marvel at his Father Time-defying success, it\u2019s just as\u00a0easy to forget that we almost didn\u2019t make it here.<\/p>\n

367 days ago, Scherzer\u2019s right thumb problems forced an early exit after only three innings during his 2025 debut, which also came in Toronto, against the Baltimore Orioles on Mar. 29. That nagging roadblock nearly brought an end to his Blue Jays career just as it was beginning. There were many times across the ensuing months where it seemed this might be it for the Cooperstown-bound hurler.<\/p>\n

But he kept at it, ultimately discovering an unconventional solution that allowed him to become Mad Max again. Because of that perseverance and determination, he\u2019s still able to continue his legendary career and, in turn, prove that he remains a crucial part of Toronto\u2019s rotation.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt just goes to show you that I\u2019ve figured out this thumb [injury],\u201d Scherzer said post-game in appreciation of how far he\u2019s come since last season\u2019s injury-shortened debut. \u201cPlaying the piano is what\u2019s solved this. My hand is in a great spot. My arm\u2019s in a great spot. This is what I wanted to have happen last year.\u201d<\/p>\n

Scherzer rightfully got his do-over, and it couldn\u2019t have arrived at a better time. Just a few\u00a0hours after Cody Ponce officially landed on the 15-day injured list<\/a> with a right knee sprain, which is expected to sideline him for the foreseeable future, if not the rest of the season, the veteran righty\u2019s six innings of work not only \u201ckept giving the team chances to score,\u201d but also made for a much easier night for the bullpen.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s precisely the type of performance that the Blue Jays needed after Ponce only lasted three innings before injuring his right knee in Monday\u2019s blowout loss, forcing backup catcher\/emergency pitcher Tyler Heineman to cover two innings of mop-up duty.<\/p>\n

Thanks to clean outings from Mason Fluharty and Braydon Fisher, both of whom bridged the later innings to closer Jeff Hoffman, that gave Tyler Rogers, Louis Varland and Brendon Little the night off after those first two had been used in three of the club\u2019s first four games.<\/p>\n

Considering Toronto\u2019s staff is now down to four healthy starters, not including Lazaro Estrada, who was recalled from Triple-A Buffalo<\/a> prior to first pitch, the bullpen needs to emerge as one of this roster\u2019s biggest strengths. That is, until the team comes across more of a long-term fix.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re getting tested right now,\u201d Scherzer said of the current pitching injury woes. \u201cFor the rest of us, we\u2019ve got to be very careful. Don\u2019t take any chances. Don\u2019t do anything risky right now. Go out there and do your job. But you can\u2019t put yourself in harm\u2019s way right now, given the amount of injuries that we have.\u201d<\/p>\n

As Scherzer\u2019s situation proves, a lot can change in a year. This time last season, most discussions revolved around whether or not he\u2019d pitch again. Now, he\u2019s part of a rather formidable, albeit depleted, quartet alongside Kevin Gausman, Dylan Cease and Eric Lauer.<\/p>\n

Unlike a year ago, the Blue Jays can now feel \u201cat ease\u201d whenever Scherzer takes the mound, as manager John Schneider explained post-game. They no longer have to worry about when his thumb might flare up again. That feeling has since been replaced by a sense of \u201cconfidence\u201d when he\u2019s out there doing his thing, attacking opposing batters like the good ol\u2019 days.<\/p>\n

Given the uncertainty surrounding Ponce\u2019s vacated rotation spot, this team could certainly use more of vintage Max Scherzer moving forward, especially in his next start when he\u2019ll be tasked with setting the tone \u2014 as he did Tuesday night \u2014 in the first of next week\u2019s three-game World Series rematch against the Los Angeles Dodgers.<\/p>\n

CHECK OUT OFF THE ROSTER \u2013 NEW EPISODES EVERY WEEKDAY\"\"<\/a>Off The Roster is Toronto sports. Hosted by Cabbie Richards, Lindsay Dunn, and Dan Riccio, this is the go-to morning conversation for everything happening in the 6ix \u2013 Hockey, Baseball, Basketball and everything in between. From breakout performances and questionable trades to throwback jerseys, viral moments, and the stories fans are actually talking about\u2014it\u2019s smart, sharp, and never scripted. Live weekday mornings on the Nation Network YouTube channel<\/a> and available wherever you stream podcasts, the show delivers real opinions, real chemistry, and real Toronto energy. Missed an episode? Catch up anytime. Off The Roster\u2014The new sound of the 6ix.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"TORONTO \u2014 Welcome to season No. 19, Max Scherzer. The 41-year-old starter was determined to return to this…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":655906,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[2378],"tags":[5,377,2554,4,282,70,2553],"class_list":{"0":"post-655905","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-toronto-blue-jays","8":"tag-baseball","9":"tag-blue-jays","10":"tag-bluejays","11":"tag-mlb","12":"tag-toronto","13":"tag-toronto-blue-jays","14":"tag-torontobluejays"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@mlb\/116327729080512936","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/655905","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=655905"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/655905\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/655906"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=655905"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=655905"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=655905"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}