Blue Jays veteran Max Scherzer set to return from injury Wednesday: 'Just have to get out there'

Scherzer has been out since late March with thumb inflammation

Veteran Toronto Blue Jays right-hander Max Scherzer is ready to return to the rotation after a successful 30-40 pitch bullpen session on Sunday. Scherzer, who's been out since late March with thumb inflammation on his pitching hand, recently told Sportsnet that he'll be activated in time to face the Cleveland Guardians on Wednesday. 

"My stuff is fine," Scherzer said Sunday before a 4-2 loss to the White Sox. "I'm trying everything I can to manage this (thumb) and make sure I can recover ... There's no knowing, just have to get out there."

The 40-year-old Scherzer has made just one start this season. Against the Baltimore Orioles on March 29, he permitted two runs in three innings of work with one strikeout and no walks before leaving with his injury. That gives him a 6.00 ERA for the season. Coming off an injury-marred season for the Texas Rangers in 2024, the three-time Cy Young winner and future Hall of Famer signed a one-year, $15.5 million free-agent contract with Toronto this past offseason. Health and durability have proved elusive for Scherzer in recent years, as he hasn't managed a qualifying number of innings in a season since 2021.

Scherzer will rejoin a Blue Jays club that's presently 41-36 and in third place in the American League East. They're four games behind the first-place New York Yankees in the division, but at the same time they occupy the second wild-card spot in the AL (-110 to make the playoffs, per Caesars). The Jays are trying to return to the postseason after enduring a disappointing 88-loss campaign in 2024. Although Scherzer has missed the vast majority of the current season, he remains an important part of Toronto's bounce-back aspirations in 2025.