Max Scherzer made his first start since May 18th and he did not allow a run. There is a 0:41
In his return to the New York Mets' rotation on Tuesday night, Max Scherzer struck out a season-high 11 batters, but the Reds were able to score a run on a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the sixth.
On May 18th, when he left his start in the sixth with an oblique strain, he was the last pitcher to start for the Mets. After two minor league rehabilitation starts, and one dog bite that didn't delay his return, Scherzer looked like his normal self in his start at Cincinnati. His pitch to strike out Matt Reynolds was his fastest pitch of the season and it was his fastest strike out since 2020.
"It felt good," he said. There were no problems today. All the way through, I felt strong. I never felt it tighten up on me. I felt like I had a good pitch. My pitch was not breaking the right way during my rehabilitation. I knew I needed to use my pitch against this team and I was able to do it.
He threw first-pitch strikes to 17 of the 21 batters he faced and 57 of 78 pitches for strikes overall. He looked better than he did in his Double-A rehab start, when he gave up three runs in 423 of work. This was the 28th career game in which Scherzer had at least 10 strikeouts and no walks and it was the second-most such games in a career.
"After all that time off, I was really impressed with his command more than anything," said Mets manager Buck Showalter. The team did not win the game. He hasn't been on the field as much as he would have liked. I think he's doing well.
He wanted to pitch in the 7th, 8th, 9th and 10th. He doesn't want to leave a game. He doesn't want to know about that. It's difficult to take a good pitcher out of a game, but we want him there for a long time.
He wanted to reach 90 to 95 pitches.
He understands that they didn't want to send him out for the seventh. I hope I'll be able to get to 99 pitches next time.
It's a good time for the Mets' rotation to get back on track. The Mets went 15-7 in April and the rotation held opponents to a.183 average and.515 OPS. The rotation has a 4.92 earned run average, which is 23rd best in the majors, and opposing hitters have a.261 average and.765 OPS.
Showalter said the number of starts he makes before the All-Star break will not change even with some extra rest between outings.
"As I get further away from the injury, it allows me to be even more aggressive with the pitch and be able to step on it even more." I didn't say anything. Maybe the grunts will come here soon.
Jacob deGrom is expected to return soon. He struck out five of the six hitters he faced in a Class A game and reached 100 mph in the process.
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