The Blue Jays have maintained some interest in Max Scherzer throughout the winter, and talks between the two sides have become more serious over the past week, per Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet. There’s no deal in place, and there are still other clubs hoping to sign the future Hall of Famer, but Toronto has apparently hastened its efforts to get the three-time Cy Young winner back to the Rogers Centre.
Scherzer, 41, spent the 2025 season with the Jays after signing a one-year, $15.5MM deal in free agency last winter. Repeated injuries pertaining to his thumb and a nerve in his right arm limited him to 85 big league innings in the regular season, during which he posted a career-worst 5.19 ERA. However, Scherzer still fanned a roughly average 22.9% of opponents against a tidy 6.4% walk rate. His 10.7% swinging-strike rate was down about three ticks from his career mark but was closely aligned with the 11% league average.
Much of the damage against Scherzer came in one nightmare start, where he surrendered seven runs in two-thirds of an inning in his penultimate appearance of the season. He had a 4.48 ERA across his other 16 starts. Obviously, any pitcher looks better if you toss out his worst appearance of a season, and even that 4.48 mark isn’t great, but Scherzer was at least serviceable for much of the season and looked better in the playoffs, when he made three starts and posted a 3.77 ERA in 14 1/3 innings.
The Jays already have ample rotation depth. Kevin Gausman, Dylan Cease, Trey Yesavage, Jose Berrios and KBO returnee Cody Ponce will open the season in the rotation, health permitting. Righty Shane Bieber is back on a one-year deal after forgoing free agency in favor of picking up his $16MM player option, but he’ll open the season on the injured list due to some forearm fatigue. The team is framing that as a matter of precaution after Bieber pitched 88 innings and worked deep into the postseason in his return from Tommy John surgery, but it’s still a notable development — as is the fact that one of the team’s top depth options, Bowden Francis, will miss the year due to Tommy John surgery.
With Toronto’s rotation depth taking those two hits in the past 10 days, it’s understandable if they’ve ramped up their efforts to bring in some further depth. An exact plan remains to be seen, assuming a deal comes together, that is. Nicholson-Smith suggests the Jays could possibly ease Scherzer up with a slow build, eyeing a season debut in late April or early May.
Price point will matter on any deal for Scherzer, particularly if the idea is for him to be on a slow progression early in the season. The Jays are in the top tier of luxury penalization and are exceeding the base threshold for a third straight season. They’ll pay a 110% tax on whatever money is paid out to Scherzer, which is a notable consideration for a team that’s already in line to establish a new franchise-record payroll by more than $30MM.
Still, there’s good reason to consider the depth in spite of the resulting tax bill. With Francis out for the season and Bieber opening on the IL, the sixth starter is Eric Lauer, who enjoyed a resurgent year with the Jays in 2025. He’ll open in a swing role, barring another injury to the top five arms, but depth options thereafter are murky.
Former top prospect Ricky Tiedemann should be healthy but hasn’t pitched since undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2024 — a season in which he totaled only 17 1/3 innings. Prospect Adam Macko struggled with poor command and posted an ERA over 5.00 in Triple-A last year. Righty Lazaro Estrada made his big league debut last year but was hit hard in 7 1/3 frames and logged a 5.73 ERA in the minors. Righties Angel Bastardo and Spencer Miles are also on the 40-man roster but are subject to Rule 5 restrictions. Bastardo was selected in 2024 but missed the 2025 season recovering from Tommy John surgery. He can’t be optioned to Triple-A before spending 90 days on the active roster. It’ll be hard for the Jays to carry either. Non-roster options in camp include Yariel Rodriguez, whom the Jays passed through waivers in December, and journeymen Connor Seabold and Michael Plassmeyer.
It’s not an especially deep or appealing set of depth options, and if Bieber winds up missing more time than expected and/or the Jays incur another injury on the big league staff, the depth will be tested in a hurry. In that sense, whether it’s a one-year reunion with Scherzer or a non-roster deal for a veteran like Anthony DeSclafani, bringing in some additional depth would be prudent for the Jays.
They must have been reading MLBTR and said get Max on the line.
It is all about his ego, because no matter what they pay him it will still be a “Max” contract.
I’ll say 10M and 3M in incentives. To match the Verlander deal.
I’m in talks with a triple, with xtra cheese and pickles with Wendy’s
Please run that by your cardiologist before you sign the contract
Yeah definitely flunking that test!
Ohhhhhhhhhh. Okaaaaaaaaay
Lame humor attempt
I wasn’t trying for humor. It was my reaction.
No I meant the other guy that’s why I put s like to your comment
Isn’t this what kids call dating now?
scherzer is already getting paid this season by at least 1team (Nationals) so he will be very acceptable to a deferred deal. I predict he gets 2 million and 10 million deferred to 2030
The Nats quietly paid Scherzer out a lump sum of the net present value of his deal years ago
I guess it wasnt Max, thanks Google. But teams do pay out deferred salary in lump sums from time to time
I don’t believe in the sun
How does it shine down on everyone
But never shines on me?
Change your name to Ignorant Sun-of-a-b.
🤣😂🤣
He only recently changed it from Joe Btfsplk
Move out of Seattle.
How could there be
Such cruelty.
You got it my man!!! Wow, I wasn’t expecting to see that here. What a songwriter huh?
It’s a classic album. Nothing beats Papa was a Rodeo.
OMG. Papa Was a Rodeo. One of the best. I’m glad there are people out there still tuned into this music.
Scherzer was the first player I saw make deferred money. He’s earning 15 mil per year rn from nationals
Bruce Sutter made over a million a year for 30 years.
I guess you don’t celebrate Bobby Bonilla Day.
Ponce is a wild card and Yesavage will likely have an innings limit. The added depth would probably be beneficial
With JS as manager, why bother with worrying about innings limits. JS doesn’t like seeing starters go over 4 innings.
“Nicholson-Smith suggests the Jays could possibly ease Scherzer up with a slow build, eyeing a season debut in late April or early May.”
So Bieber could come back when Max is up to speed? That would be a 7 man rotation, right?
Are you sure the Biebs is coming back?
Yes very
It would be great to have the LH Lauer in the rotation , while adding Scherzer and starting the “ramp-up”process…I’d say the rotation of Gausman, Cease, Yesavage , Ponce, and Berrios, will be fine while we ready our next two deep guys, Lauer and Scherzer . Although Bieber is said to be”not as bad” as earlier thought, I’d take precautions still…
Scherzer could be had for $13M, $9 M of which would be deferred, with an option for 2027…
BIG overpay, no?
If your looking for ideas on how to flush perfectly good money down the toilet just give Shapiro & Atkins a call, apparently they never run out of ideas. 🤣
@Floridacoach 2
You don’t have 2 “deep guys” (a.k.a. long men) in the BP.
You might if you don’t have any starting pitching depth in the minors and you have questionable bullpen depth (as the Jays do) anyway. The other option is to invent fake injuries and put guys on “rehab” assignments in AAA for depth, but I think Scherzer could make an effective reliever.
@smuzqwpdmx
Thank you for identifying the problems for the Jays roster, “…questionable bullpen depth…” and “…starting pitching depth…”. Both of which can and should have been addressed by minor league signings (see what the Padres have done) and waiver claims. A potential signing of Max only serves to complicate and confuse the active roster without addressing depth.
Fc2
“Scherzer could be had for $13M, $9 M of which would be deferred”
Love it when people just completely make things up and state it as fact
Whos to say they dont just keep Yesavage in AAA. Due to his options. Not all starters will be ready to go. Some injured Some taking longer to look sharp so lots of opportunities. They mainly want Max back for the clubhouse presence now that Bassitt left.
@BringBackTheExpos
I don’t see the reason to option Yesavage to Buffalo. He’s still going to be pitching so not really managing his innings. If Max won’t be ready until April/May, the Jays still need someone to pitch those innings.
Above photo was taken this morning during negotiations
He will sign with the Dodgers after leading the Jays along…..everybody else does…
@bestone
That ploy only works for high end players, not depth players.
Load management, here Max comes!
Wherever he signs, he needs to start somewhere around 20 times. That’s based on the assumption you want him in peak form in the post-season.
Max is best in high-intensity games (No surprise!) but he can’t put in winning efforts on willpower forever.
I’m sure he will be looking forward to being the backup to Lauer.
At this point unless injuries and others underperform, Lauer is in the pen. However, you know how spring goes, whoever shines the brightest earns the spot, at least on the Jays roster.
Max’s value is more than just pitching, its his club house leadership, mentorship of younger players and value as a possible coach. Any team would be lucky to have him however I hope he returns to the Blue Jays.
I could see him becoming a Pitching Coach for us once Walker retires.
Bring Max in and move him to closer if need be. He has a bulldog mentality and could excel in this role, while limiting innings.
Two lines, same article:
(1) “The Jays already have ample rotation depth.”
(2) “It’s not an especially deep or appealing set of depth options…”
If your depth options are not appealing, then I question whether you really have ample depth.
How about some bats instead?
This team thinks that a bunch of journeyman hitters that all had career years last year will repeat what they did. (or in the case of Springer, play over 100 games, which is unlikely, due to age and deteriorating body)
Not happening. This team will STRUGGLE to score runs in 2026.