Max Scherzer is joining the Toronto Blue Jays, agreeing to a 15.5 million, one-year contract on Thursday, according to a person with direct knowledge of the deal.
The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the agreement had not been announced and was pending a physical.
The 40-year-old Scherzer was limited to nine starts with Texas last year, going 2-4 with a 3.95 ERA. The three-time Cy Young Award winner opened the season on the injured list while he recovered from lower back surgery. He also was on the IL from Aug. 2 to Sept. 13 because of shoulder fatigue, and he missed the end of the season because of a left hamstring strain.
Scherzer joins a rotation that is fronted by Kevin Gausman, José Berríos and Chris Bassitt. The Blue Jays also have Bowden Francis coming off an impressive rookie season and Yariel Rodríguez, who signed a $32 million, five-year contract last February.
The Blue Jays finished last in the AL East with a 74-88 record in 2024. They haven't won a playoff game since they were eliminated by Cleveland in the 2016 AL Championship Series. They were swept in the wild-card round in 2020, 2022 and 2023.
The addition of Scherzer marks a second notable move for Toronto after it finalized a $92.5 million, five-year contract with outfielder Anthony Santander on Jan. 20.
The Blue Jays made a play for Shohei Ohtani last year and were in the mix for Juan Soto before he joined the New York Mets in December. The Blue Jays also were reportedly one of the finalists for Roki Sasaki before the Japanese pitcher signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Scherzer became a free agent after he completed a $130 million, three-year contract. He agreed to the deal with the Mets in November 2021, but he was traded to Texas in July 2023.
The right-hander won his second World Series championship in his first year with the Rangers. He also won it all with the Washington Nationals in 2019.
Scherzer was selected by Arizona in the first round of the 2006 amateur draft out of the University of Missouri. He made his big league debut with the Diamondbacks in 2008.
He won his first Cy Young Award when he went 21-3 with a 2.90 ERA in 32 starts for Detroit in 2013. The eight-time All-Star earned consecutive NL Cy Young Awards with Washington in 2016 and 2017.
Scherzer is 216-112 with a 3.16 ERA in 466 career games over 17 seasons, including 457 starts. He also has 3,407 strikeouts in 2,878 innings.
He ranks second among active pitchers in strikeouts, wins and innings, trailing former teammate Justin Verlander in each category.
___
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
Ronald Blum, The Associated Press
