Max Scherzer has an injury in his pitching arm, but he is doing everything he can to stay in the Toronto Blue Jays rotation.
Scherzer was lifted from his start on Monday after only two innings and revealed after the game that he has right forearm tendinitis.
“I’ve been dealing with this little issue for a couple of weeks, but it’s never been presenting when I’ve been throwing the ball; it’s actually been hurting more when I’m at home,” Scherzer said.
“I didn’t want to go to the IL, I just don’t think this is an IL issue where I need to miss two starts. I just needed to guard it today, so we came up with a plan that the most I would do was three innings, 50 pitches.”
Scherzer, 41, said he pulled himself from Monday’s game to preserve his arm to make his next start this weekend against the Minnesota Twins. His final line was two innings pitched, with two earned runs on two hits plus a walk, with two strikeouts.
Last season, Scherzer missed nearly three months with a thumb injury but did make 17 starts for the Blue Jays, plus three more in the playoffs.
The Blue Jays are already dealing with injuries to starters Trey Yesavage, Jose Berrios, Shane Bieber and Cody Ponce, putting more pressure on the rest of the rotation. Of that group, Yesavage is the closest to returning as he pitches in games for high-A Dunedin, but veteran starter Patrick Corbin could be the next man up after signing with the team as a free agent last week.
“A reduced start like today should really help,” Scherzer said of his recovery. “Given the state of our pitching staff, those were explicit directions: you cannot hurt yourself, you can’t take any undue risks.
“Hopefully, all the good decisions that happened today pay off this weekend.”