On Friday, Texas Rangers pitcher Max Scherzer said he's ready to go and wants to play in the American League Championship Series against the Houston Astros.
Scherzer has been out since September 13 with a right shoulder injury. He did some batting practice on Wednesday. On Friday, he did a bullpen session and pitcher's fielding practice.
"I recovered," Scherzer told reporters. "I checked all the boxes I possibly could. I'm ready to go. I respect what Houston can do. They're obviously a great team. I've got to bring my A-game."
Scherzer added that he's confident he can get batters out but doesn't know how long he can go in a game. While the Rangers haven't announced if Scherzer will be on the roster for the ALCS, the signs are positive.
"Very encouraged, the fact that he threw 68 against hitters, maintained his stuff throughout all 68," Rangers pitching coach Mike Maddux said of Scherzer's pitch count, speaking before the workouts. "He didn't skip a beat from 1 to 68. That was the encouraging part. Need to sharpen up a little bit."
Scherzer is 13-6 this season with a 3.77 ERA and 174 strikeouts. In eight starts before the injury, he had a 3.20 ERA. The question now is, should Scherzer play in the ALCS?
Scherzer should play in the ALCS. He did well in the practice and workouts that he did. He might not be 100 percent right now, but he'll have some time to get there. The Rangers have announced that Jordan Montgomery will start game one, and Nathan Eovaldi will probably start game two, so Scherzer probably won't start until game three.
Having Scherzer in the rotation means that the Rangers won't have to rely on Andrew Heaney and Dane Dunning as much as they had to in the American League Division Series. Unless something happens to Scherzer between now and game three, having Scherzer in the rotation would be the best thing for the Rangers if they want to go to the World Series.
(Photo by Cole Burston/Getty Images)
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