Blue Jays Make Decision on Max Scherzer’s Final Spring Training Start

Max Scherzer has had an incredible spring training. But it’s not over just yet.

Per Mitch Bannon of The Athletic on X (formerly Twitter), Scherzer will not break camp with the Toronto Blue Jays when they wrap up exhibition play against the Tampa Bay Rays on Sunday. This comes after Scherzer threw five shutout innings against Minnesota on Friday. He allowed two hits and two walks against three strikeouts. He also threw 73 pitches.

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Nothing is wrong. Bannon reported that Toronto wants him to get one more start in Florida before he joins the rotation and he can’t do that if he breaks camp with the team. The reporting also reveals where Scherzer could slot in the first turn of the rotation.

Where Max Scherzer Fits in Rotation

Bannon reported that Scherzer will pitch in one more game in Florida next week. It will be a minor league game with the goal of getting him to 90 pitches or six innings. Toronto wants him built up like a starter when he makes his season debut.

Based on normal rest for a starter, he could pitch on Wednesday in Dunedin, Fla. Starters tend to get an extra day of rest during spring training, so it’s possible he could pitch on Thursday. But when he pitches is key to when he joins the rotation.

The Blue Jays open the regular season on Friday at home against the Athletics. Toronto has seven games in a row before an off day. With José Berríos dealing with a stress fracture in his elbow, Trey Yesavage heading to the injured list with a shoulder impingement and Shane Bieber still building up with no timeline to return, the Blue Jays will need Scherzer.

Toronto will need him no later than March 31. That’s the fifth game of the season and a Tuesday. If Scherzer pitches in a minor league game on Wednesday, he could start as early as March 30 against Colorado on normal rest. A start on Tuesday would give him an extra day. If Scherzer pitches on Thursday, he could start Tuesday on normal rest.

That’s why a Wednesday start in Dunedin makes more sense. While it requires Scherzer to throw on normal rest, that’s something he would do during the season. It would give Toronto the flexibility to throw him on normal or extra rest, and the off day after his first start would give him a chance for an extra day of rest before his second start.

Scherzer was injured during his first start last season and missed three months with a thumb issue. He returned and went 5-5 with a 5.19 ERA in 17 starts. He was great in the postseason and started Game 7 of the World Series. The three-time Cy Young winner returned on a one-year, incentive-laden deal to bolster a starting rotation that had few questions just a couple of weeks ago.

Now, he’s part of the solution.