The Blue Jays will take on the Phillies on Tuesday and Wednesday, and they will do so as they were intended to be constructed.
The Toronto Blue Jays open up a three-game series with the Philadelphia Phillies on Monday night at Rogers Centre, but it's Tuesday's and Wednesday's games that are catching the attention of fans.
Why? Because those are the days that we will see starting pitchers Dylan Cease and Max Scherzer return from injury. As a result, that means a full restoration of the Blue Jays starting rotation, which hasn't been healthy for the entire season.
Toronto has Bowden Francis, Jose Berrios and Cody Ponce out for the entirety of the season, while Scherzer, Cease and Trey Yesavage have all spent time on the injured list.
Cease has been out with a hamstring strain while Scherzer has been out with a forearm issue.
About Cease
Now 30 years old, Cease is an eight-year veteran of the Chicago White Sox, San Diego Padres and Blue Jays. One of the best swing-and-miss pitchers in baseball, he has five straight seasons of 214 strikeouts or more. He also has five straight seasons of 30 starts or more, and this is his first trip to the injured list since coming to the big leagues in 2019.
Signed to a seven-year deal worth $210 million this offseason, he's gone 3-3 with a solid 3.05 ERA for the Jays in 11 starts. He's already struck out 92 batters in 62.0 innings.
He just gave up five earned runs on six hits at Triple-A Buffalo, but he did throw 50 strikes against just 25 balls in a 75-pitch outing.
Toronto Blue Jays starting pitcher Dylan Cease (84) throws a pitch against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the first inning at Rogers Centre. Nick Turchiaro-Imagn ImagesAbout Scherzer
Obviously set to be a Hall of Famer once he retires, it's been a dreadful year for Scherzer, who was signed before the end of spring training. He's just 1-3 with a 9.64 ERA and his rotation spot doesn't seem to be guaranteed once Shane Bieber comes back, but he'll do what he can to hold onto it for now, likely having to eventually battle with Patrick Corbin and Simeon Woods-Richardson for that spot.
For now, Scherzer will focus on pitching better - and he'll have a chance at history on Wednesday.
Scherzer is stuck on 3,499 career strikeouts, meaning his next one will make him the 11th player to record 3,500.
The other 10 players on that list? Nolan Ryan, Randy Johnson, Roger Clemens, Steve Carlton, Bert Blyleven, Tom Seaver, Don Sutton, Justin Verlander, Gaylord Perry and Walter Johnson.
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