Max-imum effort from veteran Scherzer spoiled in Blue Jays' extra-innings loss to Cleveland Guardians
Article content
In his long-awaited return from the injured list, Max Scherzer made some significant progress at Progressive Field in Cleveland on Wednesday night.
Considering the highly decorated 40-year-old free-agent signing had not pitched since his Blue Jays debut in late-March, Scherzer’s outing against the Guardians went about as well as hoped.
tap here to see other videos from our team.
Max-imum effort from veteran Scherzer spoiled in Blue Jays' extra-innings loss to Cleveland Guardians Back to video
tap here to see other videos from our team.
He was not around for the decision in a 5-4 extra-innings loss, but mixed in enough of his hall-of-fame form with some obvious rust to suggest that, as long as his troublesome right thumb holds up, the Jays’ starting rotation will only get better and deeper with his return.
Scherzer’s 25-pitch first inning was noteworthy. His competitive juices were palpable as he unwrapped just about every pitch in his toolbox, walking Guardians leadoff hitter Steven Kwan, then striking out Kyle Manzardo swinging. After Kwan stole second, Scherzer gave up an RBI single to Jose Ramirez but then fanned Carlos Santana and Lane Thomas.
In the second inning, Scherzer needed only six pitches to retire the side. Daniel Schneeman hit a sharply hit ball into centre field on the first pitch, but was erased on a double play.
In the third inning, Scherzer retired Mississauga’s Bo Naylor and Kwan on just three piches before walking Manzardo, then getting Ramirez to fly out.
By that time, Scherzer had begun to feel more at ease, and he certainly looked much better than he did during the three innings he produced in his debut. His sharpness wasn’t where it needed to be, but his trademark fire was unmistakable.
He finally ran into some trouble in the fourth. With two out and the bases empty, Scherzer gave up a double to Daniel Schneemann and, thanks to a time-count violation, walked Nolan Jones. It proved costly as Scherzer gave up a two-run double to Gabriel Arias off a fastball that caught far too much of the plate to give Cleveland a 3-1 lead.
Scherzer came out for the fifth inning, which must be viewed as a promising sign, and got through it yielding only a Manzardo single and struck out Santana to complete his night’s work.
Overall, the right-hander went five full innings, allowing three earned runs on six hits and three walks while striking out four. All things considered, it was better than expected.
The key now is how his hand will respond to the 83-pitch workload, which is why the term day-to-day still applies to his availability for a start net week.
A shaky start capped off by a strong finish, the Jays will gladly take this type of outing from Scherzer. If he can stay healthy, coupled with the emergence of lefty Eric Lauer, the Blue Jays may finally have a legitimate five-man rotation.
The following are two more takeaways from the loss that record Toronto’s record dropped to 42-37.
The Vlad Show
A night after George Springer tied Bo Bichette for the club lead in homers, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. joined the party.
When he goes deep, Vladdy’s long balls are of the no-doubt variety.
His 11th belt was the latest example when he turned on a pitch in the fourth inning for a solo blast that tied the game 1-1.
3. Agent Zero
Andres Gimenez wears jersey No. 0, which seems fitting because he’s providing the Jays with virtually zero offence.
Defensively, his Gold Glove speaks for itself.
Wednesday, his throwing error allowed Ramirez to take second base after the Guardians star knocked in the game’s first run in the first inning.
Gimenez hit a two-out double to the opposite field in the third as the Jays had their first base-runner.
Up next
The Scherzer curiosity was expected given his pedigree and potential significance to the rotation, but equally consequential is the state of Kevin Gausman, who hasn’t been himself lately. He’ll start Thursday afternoon’s series finale following two bad outings, the first in Philly when the right-hander gave up seven runs, including two homers, in 4.1 innings, the most recent against Arizona at the Rogers Centre where he gave up four runs in 5.0 innings. In his past two starts, both losses, Gausman has walked a combined seven hitters.
RECOMMENDED VIDEO
tap here to see other videos from our team.
Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion. Please keep comments relevant and respectful. Comments may take up to an hour to appear on the site. You will receive an email if there is a reply to your comment, an update to a thread you follow or if a user you follow comments. Visit our Community Guidelines for more information.