SI

Max Scherzer's Teammates and Manager Loved His Intense Argument to Stay in the Game

Scherzer's fiery response kept him out on the mound.

Kyle Koster

Max Scherzer wasn't about to come out of the game without a fight.
Max Scherzer wasn't about to come out of the game without a fight. / Kevin Ng-Imagn Images
In this story:

Max Scherzer is one of the most competitive pitchers in baseball and his managers have long faced confrontation when they attempt to take him out of games. So Blue Jays skipper John Schneider had to know what was in store as he strode to the mound to speak with his fiery starter in the fifth inning of Game 4 against the Mariners with a spot in the World Series on the line.

And Scherzer reacted the way one would expect him to act, especially since he was protecting a 5–1 lead and needed just one more out to qualify for the win. Somewhat predictably, Scherzer's passionate plea worked out as Schneider allowed him to get out of the inning and save his bullpen for later.

After the game, Schneider revealed how awesome he found the whole experience.

"I've been waiting for that moment," he said. "It was awesome, I thought he was going to kill me. It was great."

What a quote. It opens up the possibility that Schneider knew exactly what he was getting, realized it was his last chance to be in the spray zone and hustled out there just so he could experience the genuine fear of God.

Scherzer's teammates also loved to watch their pitcher turn into Mad Max, having a grand ol' time in the dugout recapping what had just happened out there.

More MLB on Sports Illustrated

feed

Published |Modified
Kyle Koster
KYLE KOSTER

Kyle Koster is an assistant managing editor at Sports Illustrated covering the intersection of sports and media. He was formerly the editor in chief of The Big Lead, where he worked from 2011 to '24. Koster also did turns at the Chicago Sun-Times, where he created the Sports Pros(e) blog, and at Woven Digital.

Home/MLB