ARLINGTON — It’s been a confusing and frustrating season for Max Scherzer.
What it’s not: His last.
Scherzer, who turned 40 just over two weeks ago, said after throwing a 25-pitch bullpen on Friday in his return from the disabled list for the second time this season that he envisions pitching in 2025. Scherzer, a three-time Cy Young Award winner who ranks second among active pitchers in both career wins (216) and innings pitched (2,874), will become a free agent after this season.
Since joining the Rangers last July, Scherzer has been plagued by a torn muscle near his shoulder, back pain, neuropathy in his arm and, more recently, arm fatigue, which has limited him to just eight starts this season. After averaging 185 innings per season from 2009-2023, Scherzer has pitched just 39 innings this season.
“When I’m out there, I can compete,” Scherzer said. “I can still pitch at a high level. I’ve seen some really good results with my slider and stuff, which were things I wanted to fix going into the season. I still feel like I have the ability to compete and win.”
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In the short term, Scherzer is expected to pitch one more relief outing on Sunday, and if that goes well, the Rangers will then make a decision on his next step, whether that be a rehab outing or a return to the starting rotation.
“Everything’s going well,” Scherzer said after a bullpen session. “We basically just tried to do spring training during the season, which we’ve never done before. We thought we needed about five extra days this time, plus an extra week or so.”
Twitter: @Evan_P_Grant
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