Rangers’ Max Scherzer Tosses Five Shutout Innings, Allows One Hit in 2024 Debut
Mad Max is back.
After missing nearly three months, Max Scherzer made his 2024 season debut against the Kansas City Royals on Sunday, and he didn’t miss a beat, completing five shutout innings while allowing just one hit and striking out four in his return.
The three-time Cy Young Award winner – who underwent off-season surgery to repair a herniated disc and experienced thumb soreness and nerve complications this past spring – threw 57 pitches (39 strikes) before departing after the fifth. It was his first big-league start since last October.
Prior to Sunday’s outing, Scherzer had only made two rehab starts at Triple-A Round Rock since resuming baseball activities earlier this month, surrendering three runs on five hits and three walks while recording 13 strikeouts over 8.2 innings.
So, the Rangers weren’t sure what to expect from the 39-year-old when he toed the rubber Sunday versus the Royals. They weren’t expecting him to be as dominant as he was in his first start off the IL. And yet, that’s precisely how it played out.
“I’ll be honest, we weren’t sure exactly where [Scherzer] was,” Rangers manager Bruce Bochy told reporters Sunday, including MLB.com’s Kennedi Landry. “I mean, he had his rehab starts, but this just makes you appreciate how good this man is. His first start back to throw that ball like that, just an incredible job he did tonight. It’s good to see him out there. The club was glad to see him out there and you just saw him competing at his finest.”
Scherzer said he could’ve gone back out to start the sixth inning if the team needed him to, but everyone involved – including the player – ultimately decided a cautious approach was the most sensible option.
As such, the eight-time All-Star handed the ball to Texas’ bullpen, which called upon José Ureña, who held Kansas City’s lineup at bay the rest of the way, limiting them to just a hit and a walk across the final four innings.
“Everything from a baseball standpoint was telling me to go back out there,” Scherzer said. “I’m pitching well, I’m throwing the ball well. Everything from that end says keep on going. I just don’t know how I’m going to recover from this with the thumb issues. It’s still there with the radial nerve, radial line.”
“I did feel fatigue in my forearm. I just don’t know how I’m going to recover from this. That’s been the issue at hand here. After the fifth inning, we felt like we got enough work and felt like we’re in a good spot. That was kind of my line.”
With four runs of support from the offence, Scherzer earned the victory at Globe Life Field, as the Rangers came away with a 4-0 shutout win in Sunday’s series finale against the Royals – extending their current winning streak to four straight.
“[The Royals’ hitters] were aggressive, and we were able to get some quick outs because of that,” Scherzer said. “Then obviously our offence gets a nice little three-spot and gives me a little breathing room. We played great baseball and we won. That’s why it’s great. It’s a great team win when everybody chips in and contributes. That’s what we play the game for.”
Texas acquired Scherzer in a blockbuster trade with the New York Mets last summer, significantly improving their starting rotation by adding the future Hall-of-Fame hurler. He made eight regular-season starts down the stretch and was a key member of the franchise’s victorious World Series run last fall.
Now that he’s returned, Scherzer – a free agent this winter – rejoins the front of a Rangers rotation that includes Nathan Eovaldi and Jon Gray. That trio awaits the returns of Jacob deGrom and Tyler Mahle, both of whom are trending towards second-half returns while recovering from Tommy John surgery.
-Thomas Hall
Twitter: @Hall_Thomas_
Photo: Erik Drost. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.