What a day for Mad Max ‼️ 5.0 IP 0 H 0 R 0 BB 7 K!!!!!!!!!
Max Scherzer throws five hitless innings in rehab start with Buffalo
Photo credit: © Kevin Sousa-Imagn Images
Jul 23, 2026, 09:00 EDTUpdated: Jul 22, 2026, 19:40 EDT
Max Scherzer’s return to the mound went about as well as anyone could have imagined.
On Wednesday, Scherzer took the mound for his first rehab start since July 8 after being forced to receive three cortisone shots in his right thumb to alleviate soreness.
Originally placed on the 15-day injured list with back spasms on June 17 hours before his scheduled start against the Boston Red Sox, Scherzer appeared in two rehab games before needing to shut himself down due to the thumb flare up.
Scherzer worked in Triple-A with Buffalo and dominated the Rochester Red Wings en route to picking up the win in a 9-2 Bisons victory. The right-hander turned in a pitching line of 5.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 7 K, and required 56 pitches (40 strikes) to round out what was his sharpest outing in months.
The 41-year-old opened the afternoon with an efficient eight-pitch top of the first inning to get the Bisons off the field quickly. Scherzer got Phillip Glasser to line out on one pitch to open the game, got Christian Franklin looking on an 85.1 MPH slider, and closed out the side by getting Abimelec Ortiz to ground out to first.
To open the top of the second inning, Scherzer got Brady House to pop up to first, then once again relied on his slider to strike out Andrew Pinckney swinging for his second of the afternoon. Scherzer needed only two more pitches to get Trey Lipscomb to fly out to left.
After the Bisons staked Scherzer to a 4-0 lead, he returned to the hill and struck out Joey Wiemer on three pitches and got Riley Adams looking on a 94 MPH fastball to begin the frame. After Cayden Wallace reached on a Josh Kasevich throwing error, the first baserunner against Scherzer, he was cut down stealing by Bisons catcher Willie MacIver to end the side.
With a 5-0 lead, and Scherzer only having thrown 30 pitches, he returned for the fourth, and the results were much the same. Scherzer got Glasser to ground out to first base on four pitches, then struck out both Franklin and Ortiz swinging.
In his final inning of work, and the Bisons holding a 6-0 lead, Scherzer got House to line out to Davis Schneider in left before getting Pinckney swinging for the second time on the day, this time on a 92.3 MPH fastball. For his final out of the afternoon, Scherzer got Lipscomb to roll a ground ball softly to third, which Charles McAdoo handled easily to close out his line.
While Scherzer has struggled with the Toronto Blue Jays this season over his six starts, highlighted by his 1-4 record, a 10.23 ERA and a 1.73 WHIP, the future Hall of Famer has passed his first test as he attempts to return to an MLB mound for the first time since June 10.
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