Veteran right-hander Max Scherzer isn’t done just yet. The future Hall of Famer will pitch in “lockout games” this offseason to gauge whether he’ll pitch in 2027, he told Jon Heyman of the New York Post.
Scherzer was noncommittal about his future before his final start with the Blue Jays. With his family in attendance, he fired seven innings of one-run ball with seven strikeouts against the Reds. It certainly had the feel of a sendoff performance, with an electric Toronto crowd backing Scherzer throughout the game.
That last outing came on short rest in a meaningless game for the standings. Part of the motivation for Scherzer seemed to be chasing down longtime rival Justin Verlander on the all-time strikeout leaderboard. He came up a bit short, with the seven punchouts getting him to 3,557, three behind Verlander. Moving from ninth to eighth on the list might not be enough to convince a normal player to keep pitching. Scherzer has proved to be a different level of competitor. It’s not out of the question that the idea of catching Verlander pushes him to play next season.
It won’t come as a shock that Scherzer dealt with several health issues in his age-41 season. He missed time with forearm, ankle, and back injuries. Scherzer ended up tossing 84 2/3 innings around the IL stints, nearly identical to his 2025 campaign with the Blue Jays.
The injuries make it hard to gauge Scherzer’s production. A 5.74 ERA across 18 starts doesn’t inspire much confidence. Neither do a 5.19 xFIP and a 5.01 SIERA. But the final stretch of the season was respectable. Scherzer returned from back spasms in late July. He closed the year with a dozen starts of a 4.16 ERA. That came with a strong 3.56 xERA, though his xFIP (4.81) and SIERA (4.69) weren’t as favorable. It’s enough to suggest that Scherzer might have something left in the tank for his age-42 campaign.
Scherzer didn’t sign until March last time around. He joined a Blue Jays squad facing uncertainty in the rotation due to injury concerns. It ended up being a disastrous year for Toronto’s rotation from a health perspective. A potential lockout could shake up the timing, but Scherzer is probably looking at a similar setup if he indeed pitches next year. Linking up with a starter-needy team near the end of the offseason would make sense.
Photo courtesy of Jamie LeBlanc, Imagn Images
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