The season hasn’t even started for the Toronto Blue Jays, and they might already have an injury cloud that could hang over them for the entire season.
Starting pitcher Max Scherzer — one of the team’s biggest offseason acquisitions — has been dealing with an injury to his right pitching hand throughout spring training.
At age 40, the three-time Cy Young winner has dealt with the same issue over the past few years.
“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. Unfortunately, this is what I’ve been dealing with since 2023,” Scherzer told reporters Monday, as per MLB.com’s Keegan Matheson.
Scherzer was limited to nine starts in 2024 while playing for the Texas Rangers, after making 27 starts the year prior splitting time between Texas and the New York Mets.
He last threw upwards of 175 innings in 2021, where he was named to the All-Star game for the eighth and most recent time of his career, while finishing third in Cy Young voting.
Though an MRI last week revealed no structural damage, the issue could persist throughout the season and have implications for the Blue Jays.
What does Scherzer’s injury history mean for the Blue Jays?
On Monday, Jose Berrios was named the starter for Toronto’s Opening Day matchup next week against the Baltimore Orioles. Though Scherzer is the most accomplished pitcher throughout his career, it doesn’t appear that the team will be turning to him as the rotation’s ace to begin the season.
Kevin Gausman is next up, with the 34-year-old in line for his fourth season in Toronto.
But everything else is a bit more up in the air after that, particularly if there’s any uncertainty around Scherzer’s availability.
Manager John Schneider told reporters Monday that the team’s rotation is still a work in progress after their first two starters.
While Schneider seems to be managing his thumb injury, it’s never a good sign that your team’s oldest player isn’t starting the season fully healthy. Though Blue Jays fans would surely love to see Scherzer make it through another season completely free of issues, it seems like a safe bet he might have limited availability during parts of the season.
Chris Bassitt and Bowden Francis are the two other names in line for Toronto’s rotation, while Alek Manoah is targeting a mid-season return after missing much of 2024 with a Tommy John surgery on his throwing arm.
Another name who could end up racking up starts for Toronto is Cuban pitcher Yariel Rodriguez, who was a star in the 2023 World Baseball Classic but struggled mightily in his first MLB season last year with Toronto. Though he’s more likely to spend much of his time in the bullpen given Toronto’s planned rotation, Rodriguez seems like the most likely fifth starter if Scherzer isn’t ready to go.
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