Blue Jays Present Lineup for Game 162 With Much More Than Season to Close

Max Scherzer could be making his final start with Toronto, while George Springer faces a possible farewell and Kazuma Okamoto closes out a historic season.

Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Max Scherzer (31). Mandatory Credit: Kevin Sousa-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Toronto Blue Jays enter the final game of their season with a 78-82 record, eliminated from the playoff race after the double loss to the Baltimore Orioles last Wednesday.

However, Game 162 at Rogers Centre will have stories much more important than the result this Sunday against the Cincinnati Reds, after both teams split the first two games of the series.

One of the most exciting moments of the afternoon will be seeing veteran right-hander Max Scherzer take the mound as Toronto’s starter, although he still does not know if he will continue playing in 2027, so this could be his last game with the Blue Jays and even the end of his career.

Scherzer himself told reporters Saturday that he will not make a decision about his future until later in the offseason, but that he wanted one more opportunity to pitch in front of his family in Game 162, in case it ended up being the final game of his career, according to Sportsnet.

At least this season, this will not be the ending Scherzer would have imagined for a season in which he has not been able to dominate and his contribution has been reduced to a negative 3-9 record, with a 6.14 ERA, 61 strikeouts and 34 walks. The three-time Cy Young Award winner has seen his bWAR fall to -0.6 this year, his only negative mark in 19 Major League seasons.

Even so, his career in Toronto already has a chapter that cannot be erased, when he contributed in last year’s postseason and faced Game 7 of the 2025 World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers, pitching 4 1/3 innings of one-run ball before the Blue Jays lost in 11 innings.

This Sunday, he will have one final opportunity to take the mound in 2026. On the other side will be Brandon Williamson, a 28-year-old left-hander, who will be Cincinnati’s starter, with a 4-4 record and a 5.56 ERA. The Reds also enter Game 162 without a chance at the postseason and with a losing record of 74-86 after qualifying for the Wild Card Series last year.

Starting lineup for Game 162

1. George Springer, DH
2. Brett Bateman, RF
3. Kazuma Okamoto, 3B
4. Charles McAdoo, 1B
5. Davis Schneider, LF
6. Brandon Valenzuela, C
7. Myles Straw, CF
8. Andres Gimenez, SS
9. Ernie Clement, 2B

Toronto Blue Jays designated hitter George Springer (4). Mandatory Credit: Kevin Sousa-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

For Toronto, George Springer’s presence carries special weight. The game against Cincinnati is the final one of his six-year, $150 million contract, and after this season he will become a free agent. Springer has improved during the second half of the season, but overall, he has hit .248/.320/.402, with 15 home runs and 54 RBI. His 0.9 fWAR has fallen well below the value he provided to the team’s offense with 32 home runs, 84 RBI and 5.2 fWAR last year. So Game 162 could also be his last game with the Blue Jays.

Among the big stories of the season has been the debut of Kazuma Okamoto, who enters Game 162 with a record 33 home runs for rookies in franchise history and 92 RBI. Okamoto also leads the team with 2.4 bWAR and a .454 slugging percentage, in a season where Toronto, despite injuries to key hitters such as Anthony Santander and Addison Barger, has had a disappointing drop in its power with just four hitters who have accumulated 10 or more home runs.

None of them is Vladimir Guerrero Jr., who has hit nine home runs — just one at Rogers Centre this year, after a drought of 274 plate appearances — while seeing his slugging percentage fall from .467 in 2025 to just .365, even falling below rookie Brett Bateman (.422 in 177 plate appearances).