Orioles 9, Blue Jays 5: Max Scherzer rocked in first, injured in third of another disheartening Toronto defeat
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As an eight-time all star, three-time Cy Young Award winner and two-time World Series champ, there have been far bigger moments for veteran Max Scherzer.
And unfortunately for the Toronto Blue Jays — the seventh team of his big-league career — there have been far better debuts.
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Orioles 9, Blue Jays 5: Max Scherzer rocked in first, injured in third of another disheartening Toronto defeat Back to video
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What started as a shaky outing for the 40-year-old right hander ended in clear pain for the future Hall of Famer, who has battled to stay healthy since 2023.
On just his second pitch of the game, Scherzer allowed a towering home run to Orioles leadoff hitter Colton Cowser.
Three batters later it was Jordan Westburg’s turn to take Scherzer deep to set the O’s on their way to a 2-0 lead.
Scherzer would settle down to retire the next seven in a row.
When he returned to the dugout, however, Scherzer was visibly upset as he talked with manager John Schneider and pitching coach Pete Walker, his afternoon clearly done.
The Jays later announced that Scherzer was felled with “right lat discomfort” rather than the sore thumb that had dogged him during spring training (and much of 2024).
It wasn’t immediately known how serious the ailment is, but given the thumb woes in the pre-season, it’s been precarious times for Scherzer so far.
On to our takeaways from Game 3 of 162, a 9-5 loss in which the Jays squandered an opportunity to move above .500 for the first time since April 24, 2024 when they were 13-12.
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1. Now what?
As incredulous as it sounds, just three games into the season, the Blue Jays are staring down a potential crisis in their rotation.
It’s the risk you take when you shell out $15.5 million U.S. on a one-year deal for a 40-year-old arm that made just nine starts the previous season. And it’s especially risky when the prime candidate for your sixth starter — Yariel Rodriguez — is averse to consistently getting outs.
We say this not knowing how much time Scherzer will miss, if any. But for a team that plays 20 times in the first 21 days of the season — much of it against stout opposition — it’s a concern.
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2. Bunch of Bull
Granted we haven’t seen the back end of the retooled Jays bullpen in meaningful action in these early days of the season, but there have been issues from the rest of the Jays relief camp.
Upon Scherzer’s exit it could get ugly in a hurry as Richard Lovelady allowed four runs on two hits, two hit batters and a walk. Gulp. Jacob Barnes, who tried to restore order in the fifth, allowed two more runs across and the O’s were on their way. Despite Scherzer’s troubles, the Jays were leading 4-2 upon his exit.
And zooming out to look at the pitching staff as a whole, they’ve allowed a whopping 10 home runs through three games against the O’s, including three on Saturday.
Meanwhile, manager John Schneider couldn’t wait much longer to get his big dogs of the ‘pen in action, which is why Jeff Hoffman came in to make his Jays debut in the ninth with his team trailing 9-5. Hoffman faced four batters, allowing an infield hit while striking out one.
2. Offence awakening?
What makes the pitching issues even more bothersome from a Jays perspective is that the offence is actually showing some signs of life.
It’s especially tough when your leadoff man, Bo Bichette, has a four-hit day including a couple of doubles and the team has nothing to show for it. After his ninth-inning double (off of O’s beastly closer Felix Bautista), Bichette moved to 6-for-12 on the season for a tidy .500 average. That work sure seems like a clear validation of some of the stellar work he displayed in spring training.
Meanwhile, Andres Gimenez — the unlikely cleanup guy given his offensive struggles in Cleveland — hit his second homer of the season, a two-run shot in the third inning. Through three games, the shortstop renowned for his superb defensive play, has all of the Jays home runs.
On the day, the Jays managed five runs from eight hits, the Gimenez blast the most impressive. There was also a nice response in the bottom of the first when singles from the top three in the order — Bichette, Vlad Guerrero Jr. and Anthony Santander — triggered a two-run inning to counter the early damage inflicted on Scherzer.
But when the pitching allows 12 hits and three from that dozen are out of the park, there are going to be issues.
UP NEXT
The Jays will look for the split with the O’s as they wrap up their first series of the season with a Sunday matinee (1:37 p.m. first pitch at the Rogers Centre). Veteran Chris Bassitt faces the Orioles’ Tomoyuki Sugano. On deck is a three-game series against the Washington Nationals starting on Monday to finish the Jays’ seven-game, season-opening home stand.
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