Blue Jays Targeting 3-Time Cy Young Award Winner in Free Agency: Report
The Toronto Blue Jays have been linked to multiple position players on the free agent market, even after signing outfielder Anthony Santander to a $92.5 million contract. Now, the Blue Jays are turning their attention to the pitching market – and a certain three-time Cy Young Award winner.
Max Scherzer tops the list of the Blue Jays’ updated shopping list, FanSided’s Robert Murray reported Wednesday on The Baseball Insiders podcast with Adam Weinrib. Murray also echoed an earlier report from Z101 Digital’s Hector Gomez that first baseman Pete Alonso is among the Blue Jays’ targets. The two Scott Boras clients have lingered on the free agent market longer than many of their peers.
Scherzer, 40, is coming off a season in which he went 2-4 with a 3.95 ERA in nine starts for the Texas Rangers. He began the season on the injured list while rehabbing from back surgery, returned in June, then went back on the injured list in August with right shoulder fatigue. He ended the season on the injured list with a left hamstring strain.
Scherzer’s 92.5 mph average fastball velocity was down three ticks from its peak; the pitch still averaged 95 mph as recently as 2020. But the veteran right-hander has a wide array of pitches in his arsenal; his slider, changeup, and cutter were all above-average offerings in a limited sample last year.
Scherzer is an eight-time All-Star who has pitched two no-hitters and won World Series titles with the Washington Nationals in 2019 and the Rangers in 2023.
