Report: Blue Jays’ Max Scherzer’s MRI on thumb comes back clean

It seems as if Max Scherzer is going to be alright.

The 40-year-old right-handed pitcher was set to start for the Toronto Blue Jays on Thursday but was replaced by Easton Lucas. At the time, Sportsnet’s Arden Zwelling reported that he had a sore right thumb.

Multiple sources reported on Thursday morning that Scherzer underwent an MRI on his thumb and the team has no concerns. Moreover, it’s not related to the nerve injury that kept him out for a portion of last season.

This is good news as Scherzer has shoved this Spring Training. Through three starts or nine innings, Scherzer has a 2 ERA and a 2.04 FIP with a  46.7 K% and no walks allowed. Due to injury in 2024, Scherzer pitched just 43.1 innings with the Texas Rangers where he had a 3.95 ERA and a 4.18 FIP.

Scherzer won the World Series with the Rangers in 2023, posting a 3.77 ERA and a 4.32 FIP in 152.2 innings pitched. The last time he looked great was in 2022 with the New York Mets, where he had a 2.29 ERA and a 2.62 FIP in 145.1 innings pitched.

It’s safe to say that Scherzer will be a first-ball Hall of Famer but he still has some gas left in the tank. Formerly an ace, Scherzer will fill in the back end of the Blue Jays rotation that also features Kevin Gausman, José Berríos, Chris Bassitt, and Bowden Francis.

If any one of those five pitchers misses any significant time, the next man up would be Yariel Rodríguez, who started 21 games with the Jays last season and had a 4.47 ERA and a 4.34 FIP in 86.2 innings pitched.

Aside from that, the Blue Jays’ starting pitching depth has been tested, as Chad Dallas, Adam Macko, and Ricky Tiedemann are all out for the time being. Jake Bloss is a good candidate to see some starts if need be, so too is Lazaro Estrada. The Jays also have Ryan Yarbrough, Eric Lauer, Adam Kloffenstein, and Andrew Bash as non-roster invites.

Thankfully, the depth seems like it won’t need to be tested just yet.