Scherzer to make Blue Jays debut vs. Orioles on Saturday

The Toronto Blue Jays will have a boost in the form of a bonafide future Hall of Famer in Max Scherzer on the hill for their game against the Baltimore Orioles on Saturday.

The three-time Cy Young winner and two-time World Series champion is slated to make his debut for Toronto after being slowed by a thumb injury in Spring Training.

“He came in firing this morning, going over scouting reports with [pitching coach] Pete [Walker]," manager John Schneider said ahead of the season opener on Thursday. "His hair was everywhere. He’s flipping into regular season mode.” 

There were concerns over whether Scherzer could make his debut in the opening series or if he would be pushed back after missing over a week of action due to a thumb issue the 40-year-old righty acknowledged can also have negative side-effects for his shoulder.

“My thumb hurts. It hurts to grip the ball. The critical thing I’ve learned over the years here is that your thumb is absolutely critical to your arm health," Scherzer said earlier in March. "Unfortunately, this is what I’ve been dealing with since 2023."

Scherzer did not allow a run and struck out four while only surrendering two hits and one walk during a spring game against the Minnesota Twins on Saturday, his first game since March 8. 

Scherzer threw 47 of his 62 pitches for strikes, reaching as high as 94.7 MPH with his fastball and averaging 93.3 MPH. 

The potential for injury will likely be a concern for Scherzer all season long as he enters his 17th year in the big leagues. 

Scherzer has not pitched more than 45 innings in each of the past two seasons with the Texas Rangers due to multiple injuries. He posted a 3.95 ERA over nine starts in 2024 with the Rangers. 

Scherzer is an eight-time All-Star and won his World Series titles in 2019 with the Washington Nationals and 2023 with the Rangers. The native of St. Louis has a career 3.16 ERA with 216 wins and 3,407 strikeouts.