Latest news with #MaxScherzer
Yahoo
a day ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
MLB Makes Trea Turner Decision After Phillies' Loss to Astros
MLB Makes Trea Turner Decision After Phillies' Loss to Astros originally appeared on Athlon Sports. Philadelphia Phillies shortstop Trea Turner is playing in his eleventh major league season since making his MLB debut in 2015. Advertisement He was drafted in the first round of the 2014 MLB Draft out of NC State by the San Diego Padres and subsequently was dealt to the Washington Nationals in an eleven-player three-team deal. After seven seasons in Washington and two with the Los Angeles Dodgers—via a 2021 trade deadline deal that included Max Scherzer—the Phillies signed Turner to an 11-year, $300 million contract in the 2022 offseason. Last season, Turner helped lead Philadelphia to its third consecutive postseason and earned his first All-Star selection as a member of the organization. Philadelphia Phillies shortstop Trea Turner (7)Erik Williams-Imagn Images During Wednesday's 2-0 loss to the Houston Astros, Isaac Paredes hit a ball towards Turner in the first inning that was initially ruled a hit and produced a run. Advertisement Today, MLB decided to overturn that call, officially charging Turner with an error on the play. Turner has otherwise enjoyed a solid defensive campaign; this marks just his second error in his last 52 games. In 2025, he has mashed nine home runs, compiled a .295 batting average, posted a .790 OPS and swiped 19 bases, blending speed and power in his offensive production. A three-time All-Star and World Series champion, Turner will look to bounce back as Philadelphia opens a series against the division rival Atlanta Braves. The Phillies managed just one run in that series sweep by Houston; with the offense sputtering, Turner now faces added pressure to rebound and help maintain the team's push for a fourth consecutive trip to the postseason. Advertisement Related: Phillies' Rob Thomson Announces Bryce Harper News Before Astros Game Related: Phillies' Rob Thomson Announces Bryce Harper News Before Marlins Game This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 27, 2025, where it first appeared.
National Post
2 days ago
- Sport
- National Post
Should the Toronto Blue Jays make a deal for an arm or a bat at the trade deadline?
Article content WATCH BELOW: On the latest episode of Long Ball, Postmedia's Rob Wong chats with Toronto Sun Blue Jays writer Rob Longley about the Blue Jays' biggest needs ahead of the trade deadline and what the expectation for Max Scherzer should be the rest of the season.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Blue Jays Fans React to Max Scherzer News After Guardians Game
Blue Jays Fans React to Max Scherzer News After Guardians Game originally appeared on Athlon Sports. Max Scherzer's long road back from injury has been one of the Toronto Blue Jays' most closely watched storylines this season. The 40-year-old right-hander, who missed nearly three months due to a thumb issue, spent weeks building up his pitch count in the minors before finally rejoining the Major League roster against the Cleveland Guardians. Advertisement Over the past month, Scherzer has made rehab starts for the Triple‑A Buffalo Bisons, slowly increasing his workload while focusing on regaining command and velocity. His return comes at a pivotal point in the Blue Jays' season as they continue to hover around the postseason fringe. The team has been cautious with his recovery, managing pitch counts and spacing out appearances to prevent setbacks. Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Max Scherzer (31).Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images During his Cleveland start, Scherzer threw 83 pitches over five innings, allowing three runs with four strikeouts. Manager John Schneider noted after the game that Scherzer told him he 'feels better today than he did the day after his Triple‑A rehab start,' signaling positive progress. Additionally, Scherzer mentioned he could have thrown another 10 pitches beyond the 83 he threw on Tuesday, reinforcing the team's cautious approach to his workload. If Scherzer continues trending this way, he'll be allowed to pitch deeper into games in his next outings. Fans were relieved to hear this news. Advertisement "Great news," said one. "MASSIVE W," one added. "What a relief," one wrote. "I was awaiting an update. Can't wait for his next start." "I think we ALL lost our bets here," stated one. "Joey Votto 2.0 has been postponed for now." "LETS GO," said another. The Blue Jays will continue to monitor his recovery closely, but all signs point to a steady return to full workload. For a team chasing a playoff spot, a healthy Scherzer could prove to be one of their most important assets in the second half of the season. Related: Yankees Fans Upset After Vladimir Guerrero Jr. News on Monday Related: Blue Jays Predicted to Make Trade After Max Scherzer News This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 26, 2025, where it first appeared.
Al Arabiya
2 days ago
- Sport
- Al Arabiya
Dodgers right-hander Clayton Kershaw strikes out 5, moves closer to 3,000 career strikeouts
Los Angeles Dodgers left-hander Clayton Kershaw inched closer to 3,000 career strikeouts on Thursday, fanning five in six innings against the Colorado Rockies. Kershaw has 2,997 strikeouts in his 18-year career – three short of becoming the 20th major leaguer to reach the milestone. The 37-year-old would be the third active pitcher to reach the mark behind Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer. Verlander, in his 20th season, has 3,468 strikeouts. Scherzer has 3,412 in 18 seasons. Kershaw struck out three in the first two innings Thursday and got his fourth for the final out of the fifth. He struck out Tyler Freeman for the second out of the sixth inning and left the game after retiring the next batter. He threw 69 pitches, 41 for strikes. He recorded two strikeouts on his 73 mph curve and got three more on sliders against a Rockies lineup that included all right-handed batters. Kershaw's next scheduled start is expected to come at Dodger Stadium on July 2 against the Chicago White Sox. The three-time NL Cy Young Award winner and 10-time All-Star received plenty of crowd support in Colorado, getting a standing ovation from some in the Coors Field crowd when he left the mound after the sixth inning. Kershaw had made eight starts this season after being activated from the injured list May 17 following offseason left knee and foot surgeries. Kershaw left with a 3–1 lead and was in line for his fourth straight victory. His ERA dropped to a season-low 3.03.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Finally back on the mound, Max Scherzer's expectations are as high as ever: 'There's only one standard'
CLEVELAND — By most measures, the Blue Jays' 5-4 loss on Wednesday in Cleveland would qualify as one of the more disappointing defeats of the year. A late lead surrendered. Struggles to convert with runners in scoring position. Outs on the basepaths. Defensive miscues. Getting walked off in extra innings. All common ingredients for a not-so-fun ballgame. Fixate on the nitty-gritty details, and a loss such as that might sting. But zoom out, and Wednesday was a good day for the Toronto Blue Jays, because Max Scherzer made his highly anticipated return to the rotation following a three-month absence due to a thumb injury. For as frustrating as the final five frames might've been for Toronto, the first five innings thrown by the 40-year-old provided a welcome counterbalance of optimism. Advertisement On the surface, nothing about Scherzer's start was extraordinary. He allowed three runs on six hits across five innings of work, struck out four and walked three. He threw 83 pitches, 55 for strikes. But for a pitcher of Scherzer's stature — one who has accomplished virtually everything a major-league starter could dream of — each outing carries significance regardless of the stat line, as every appearance offers an opportunity to climb higher on the all-time leaderboards. And for a Blue Jays team still trying to find its groove in the thick of the AL wild-card race, the addition of Scherzer in the rotation could provide a jolt and some much-needed momentum. Scherzer's start on Wednesday — the 459th of his major-league career, more than all but 81 pitchers in MLB's 150-year history — featured some encouraging signs, as well as a few hiccups. A 25-pitch first inning featured a lengthy battle with leadoff man Steven Kwan that resulted in a walk, a José Ramírez RBI single and three strikeouts. Scherzer's fastball peaked at 95.2 mph in the opening frame — besting his season-high of 95.1 across nine starts in 2024 — to get Lane Thomas looking on the outer half. After needing 17 total pitches to navigate the next two innings unscathed, Scherzer encountered some unusual trouble in the fourth. With two outs, a runner on third and Nolan Jones at the plate, Scherzer committed two pitch-clock violations when he came set before Jones was alert to the ball. Doing so once is just a warning, but the second violation in the same at-bat results in an automatic ball. That came in a full count and thus granted Jones a two-strike walk. Advertisement '[Jones] was tapping the plate, and usually when hitters tap the plate, that means they're ready, and then they look up. He was tapping the plate and still looking down,' Scherzer explained afterward. 'And so that just threw off the rhythm … Usually, when you tap the plate, you're ready to go. So that's why I was coming set early, even though I thought it was on time.' Three pitches later, Gabriel Arias drove a double into the right-center-field gap to bring in two runs. It was an unfortunate sequence, but Scherzer had no interest in using the violations as an excuse. '[Umpire Bill Miller] made the right call,' he said. 'He wasn't looking; I get it. I talked to [Miller] about it, and it is what it is. I'm not going to blame the clock. I made a bad pitch to the next hitter, and that's why they scored those runs.' Advertisement Scherzer bounced back the following frame, holding the top of Cleveland's order in check to complete five innings without further damage. Still, the blip in the fourth inning, highlighted by a poorly located fastball to Arias, exemplified the razor-thin margin between failure and success at the highest level, particularly for a pitcher such as Scherzer who expects excellence of himself each and every time out. 'He just keeps that level of intensity,' rotation mate Kevin Gausman said Tuesday. 'You see rookies when they first come up, they have that level of trying to prove themselves. Some guys kind of lose that as time goes on. 'Well, Max never lost that. Every time he pitches, it's like he's still trying to prove to everybody that he is who he is.' 'He is constantly thinking about pitching' Scherzer's initial assessment of his return outing? 'A little rusty. I pitched good, but I didn't pitch great. There were a couple pitches there that changed the ball game, and I got to be better in those situations.' Advertisement Stuff-wise, Scherzer said he felt good about how his repertoire looked after such a lengthy layoff. The velocity was in a good spot, and his offspeed and breaking pitches flashed as effective offerings. But without the overpowering arsenal that he wielded in his prime, Scherzer is well aware that his stuff alone will no longer carry an outing. "It's an execution thing — where the ball ends up. When I'm right, when I'm pitching well, I get the ball to spots, and I hold myself to that standard. And there's only one standard,' he said. 'I don't sit here and celebrate good. I have a standard, and that's great. And I can execute pitches at a great level. And that's what I strive for. … I got to figure out how to do it and what it's going to take." Even when he was sidelined, Scherzer's expectations for himself were apparent to his new teammates. It's a mindset that not only drives Scherzer's individual success but also had already permeated Toronto's clubhouse leading up to his return, which his teammates spoke about ahead of Wednesday's game. 'He loves talking baseball and doesn't stop talking baseball,' catcher Tyler Heineman said. 'It's nonstop, and it's a lot, but if you're able to sit with it and digest it, you can really learn a lot about every little thing. He doesn't know just about pitching and about all that, he knows about hitters' approaches, he knows about outfield positioning based on what he's seen. He knows the game so well that being able to pick his brain a little bit is just so invaluable.' Advertisement Added Gausman: 'He's a baseball rat. He is constantly thinking about pitching. If he's not doing it, he's talking about someone else doing it and how they go about doing it and kind of what he would do differently if he was them. He just cannot turn that off, and that's why he's been so good.' 'Anytime you have a guy who has had so much success in the major leagues and so much experience in big games on really good teams, that kind of experience is really amazing to have around,' infielder Ernie Clement said. 'He's been awesome to have around. He expects a lot out of us.' Staying on the mound at 40 Yet for as impactful as Scherzer has been in the clubhouse, his greatest value to Toronto remains on the field. And his ability to contribute will depend entirely on how his body holds up. One of baseball's most durable starting pitchers through his spectacular prime in the 2010s, Scherzer has navigated myriad physical setbacks over the past half-decade, with the thumb injury the latest ailment to interrupt the latter stages of the legendary right-hander's career. Advertisement He departed his first start of the season on March 29 early due to lat tightness but explained later that it was tied to a recurring issue with his thumb that he needed to iron out before returning to the mound. Scherzer reiterated this when discussing what he'll monitor in the coming days to ensure he's in the best physical position to take the ball moving forward. As manager John Schneider stressed before and after Scherzer's return, the short-term focus is how Scherzer responds physically in between outings; the days and weeks ahead will dictate plenty about what the team can expect from him as far as workload. But if Scherzer can manage the day-to-day quest for durability, it will be fascinating to see what level of pitcher he can be for Toronto. It's no surprise — and entirely appropriate for a future first-ballot Hall of Famer — that Scherzer continues to hold himself to the highest standard. But an impartial assessment of his chances to make an impact at this stage of his career would probably be more bearish. Look no further than the trio of older right-handers who signed nearly identical free-agent contracts this winter: 42-year-old Justin Verlander, 41-year-old Charlie Morton and 37-year-old Alex Cobb signed one-year, $15 million deals in the offseason, just below the $15.5 million pact Scherzer inked in February. Verlander is still touching 97 mph but hasn't earned a win in 12 starts with the Giants, and he has a 4.52 ERA. Cobb remains on the injured list due to a hip injury and has yet to throw a pitch for Detroit. Morton has looked better recently, but his ERA is an ugly 5.63 after a miserable April. For Scherzer, who turns 41 next month, to have only eight innings pitched for the Blue Jays with July around the corner is surely disappointing, but there's still ample time for him to make good on his contract — and clear the ultra-low bar set by his veteran peers. Advertisement Every situation and every pitcher is different, but it's crucial context for the uphill battle Scherzer faces. And for a pitcher who has spent his entire career pitching like he has something to prove, perhaps such a daunting challenge will only bring out more greatness. 'We're taking it a day at a time,' Schneider said postgame Wednesday. 'But watching what he did tonight, going forward, it means a ton. 'He's one of the best competitors of this generation of baseball. And when you get that out there on the mound every fifth day, it's really exciting.'
