Scherzer ‘at his finest’ in one-hit debut, ties Maddux on K list

ARLINGTON — Manager Bruce Bochy said on Sunday morning that the Rangers didn’t need Max Scherzer to come back and immediately look like a three-time Cy Young Award winner. Texas doesn’t need him to look like the peak version of himself — the one that has all but secured a spot in the Hall of Fame.

“We’re not putting any expectations on him,” Bochy said. “He’s missed a lot of games. We’ve told him that. We’re not expecting him to be that [three-time Cy Young Award winner]. We want him to go out there and give us a chance to win. That’s all we’re looking for. Max is a smart guy. He knows himself better than anybody, knows where he’s at in his career. It’s good to have him out there. His presence is good for the club, I think.”

That said, it surely doesn’t hurt if Scherzer does look like the best version of himself.

Making his 2024 debut against the Royals in a 4-0 victory Sunday at Globe Life Field, Scherzer tossed five scoreless innings on a very efficient 57 pitches, allowing just one hit and striking out four Royals batters.

“I’ll be honest, we weren’t sure exactly where [Scherzer] was,” Bochy said. “I mean, he had his rehab starts, but this just makes you appreciate how good this man is. His first start back to throw that ball like that, just an incredible job he did tonight. It’s good to see him out there. The club was glad to see him out there and you just saw him competing at his finest.”

Scherzer said he felt a little bit of rust at the beginning there, but quickly worked through it, retiring the first 13 batters he faced before MJ Melendez doubled with one out in the fifth inning. He was promptly stranded at second base.

“He’s a Hall of Fame pitcher, one of the best pitchers in the league,” said Royals catcher Salvador Perez. “He located the ball pretty good, he didn’t make any mistakes in the middle of home plate, so he did his job today.”

Scherzer and reliever José Ureña combined to face just one over the minimum to shut out Kansas City on just 99 total pitches. Rangers pitchers have logged a season-high 22 consecutive scoreless innings dating back to the sixth frame of Friday’s 6-2 win over the Royals. It is the club’s longest such streak since Sept. 2016 (23 innings). Ureña became the first Rangers reliever to record a save of four or more innings since CJ Wilson on Aug. 26, 2005, against the Twins.

The 39-year-old Scherzer — who the Rangers acquired from the Mets at last year’s Trade Deadline — had offseason surgery to fix a herniated disc in his back and then dealt with thumb soreness and nerve issues that further delayed his return to the mound.

“It is a testament to what he’s done in the game, how competitive he is,” Bochy said. “It’s been a long road back, with a pretty big hiccup there, with what he’s been battling. It does take somebody that’s so tough minded with the grit that he has. Like I said, it makes you appreciate really how good this man is.”

Though he threw just 57 pitches in five innings, Bochy said Scherzer was right where they wanted him to be. Both manager and player said he could have gone back out if necessary, but they didn’t think it necessary to push it his first time out.

“Everything from a baseball standpoint was telling me to go back out there,” Scherzer said. “I’m pitching well, I’m throwing the ball well. Everything from that end says keep on going. I just don’t know how I’m going to recover from this with the thumb issues. It’s still there with the radial nerve, radial line. I did feel fatigue in my forearm. I just don’t know how I’m going to recover from this. That’s been the issue at hand here. After the fifth inning, we felt like we got enough work and felt like we’re in a good spot. That was kind of my line.”

Scherzer’s four strikeouts in his return allowed him to tie Hall of Famer Greg Maddux for No. 11 on MLB’s all-time strikeout list at 3,371.

Wyatt Langford backed Scherzer with his 10th RBI in his past five games with a run-scoring double in the fourth before Leody Taveras drove in two more on a bloop single to left. Then, Josh Smith homered in the seventh to cap the Rangers’ first sweep of the season.

“[The Royals’ hitters] were aggressive, and we were able to get some quick outs because of that,” Scherzer said. “Then obviously our offense gets a nice little three-spot and gives me a little breathing room. We played great baseball and we won. That’s why it’s great. It’s a great team win when everybody chips in and contributes. That’s what we play the game for.”