Scherzer’s next steps clearer after visit with specialist
It’s too soon to determine when Max Scherzer will be able pitch again. But a plan is now in place after he received a cortisone shot intended to reduce inflammation and pain in his right thumb.
TORONTO — A visit to a hand specialist led to a cortisone shot for Max Scherzer, who returned to Rogers Centre hopeful that he can start playing catch again before long.
At this point, it’s too soon to determine when Scherzer will be able to get off a mound again, let alone pitch in a major-league game. But if nothing else, a plan is now in place with the cortisone shot intended to reduce inflammation and pain in his right thumb.
Once that happens, Scherzer hopes his entire body will sync up better instead of overcompensating for the thumb issue the way it did in his Blue Jays debut Saturday, when lat soreness forced him out of the game after just three innings and 45 pitches.
“It’s an injury I just can’t pitch through,” he said near the third base dugout Tuesday afternoon. “That (thumb) joint, the ligament, everything around there is critical. The rest of the body is completely dependent on the health of that (area). You can’t just override and pitch through that pain because once that’s compromised, it compromises the rest of your arm. That’s why I had different ailments with my shoulder and back. It’s all related to the thumb.”
The lat soreness dissipated quickly for Scherzer, and the trip to visit Dr. Thomas Graham was a productive one. At their meeting Monday, Dr. Graham looked at an MRI of the area and felt the hand to get a better read on the ligaments and joints. Afterwards, he told Scherzer he was “pleasantly surprised” at how things looked structurally and recommended a cortisone shot.
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“It doesn’t feel good, but you’ll take any amount of pain to get back out there,” Scherzer said. “Pain’s not the problem. The pain is not being able to pitch and be out there. That’s what stinks. We all go through stuff. We all have ailments. We’re not always healthy. You just deal with it as a professional athlete.”
Based on the results of Monday’s tests, there’s no need to consider surgery now, according to Scherzer. But, as a precaution, Dr. Graham also discussed potential treatment options in case the three-time Cy Young winner doesn’t respond well to the shot.
“It’s also trying to map out, if this turns south again, what would be the treatment options be after that?” Scherzer said. “So let’s hope that doesn’t happen.”
“Hopefully it’s not too long, but I don’t really have a set date, target or timeline,” added manager John Schneider. “We’ll see how he feels in the next couple days.”
Scherzer says he typically responds well to these shots, which he’s had many times during his 18-year career, including twice for this same thumb issue last fall. For now, it’s a matter of waiting to let the shot take effect and then gradually building back up once the pain in the thumb subsides.
Ideally, Scherzer would play catch Friday in New York, where he’ll join the Blue Jays on their upcoming road trip. Yet, it’s possible he’ll require more time before resuming throwing, which creates an opening in the Blue Jays’ rotation for someone like Easton Lucas or Yariel Rodriguez in the meantime.
None of it’s ideal at a time that the Blue Jays are short on big-league ready pitching depth, but there’s obviously no sense in rushing Scherzer back. And given his long track record as an elite pitcher, the Blue Jays trust his judgment here.
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“He’s been doing this for a long time and very he’s very convicted in what he feels and how he goes about it,” Schneider said. “So I think that like with anything he does, he’s just pretty aware of what’s going on.”
Of course, it might take time for Scherzer to build back up to a full workload even if the shot works as intended. He threw just 45 pitches in his lone start of the season, and the longer the layoff goes, the more likely a minor-league rehab assignment will be needed.
In the meantime, Scherzer plans to trust the experts and take a measured approach to getting back on the field.
“Really just (stay) even-keeled,” he said. “I’m just trying to not ride the roller coaster with this. Just try to take it a day at a time. What can I do to treat it? What can I do to protect it and find a way forward?”
