When the Blue Jays signed Max Scherzer to a one-year contract this offseason, they did so with the hopes that he'd be able to find some flashes of the dominance that made him a three-time Cy Young winner earlier in his career.
He's done all of that and more this spring. Not only has Scherzer impressed in his initial time on the mound in a Blue Jays uniform, but he has done so with a new pitch.
The right-hander has added a sinker to his already Hall of Fame-worthy arsenal.
Max Scherzer off to good start with Blue Jays and one of MLB's best new pitches this spring
According to MLB.com's David Adler, Scherzer's new weapon ranks among the nastiest new pitches to be debuted in spring training this year.
"Scherzer's sinker is averaging about 90 mph, with 10 inches more drop than his four-seamer and way more arm-side run -- over 18 inches, which would have been in the top five for sinker movement in the Majors last season," writes Adler.
According to Statcast, Scherzer didn't throw any sinkers in his most recent start against the Detroit Tigers but used the new pitch five times in his start against the Philadelphia Phillies on March 2.
You may remember that game because it began Scherzer being trolled by Trea Turner over Scherzer's comments regarding the ABS system. Scherzer threw the sinker strictly to left-handed batters, maxing out at 90.3 mph and averaging 89.7 mph.
It remains to be seen how often he'll break out the sinker this season since he has an already full arsenal that includes a four-seam fastball, slider, changeup, curve and cutter.
So far, Scherzer has racked up 14 strikeouts through three Grapefruit League starts. He counted six alone against the Tigers and appears to be in vintage form. He has now thrown nine innings this spring, allowing just two runs on three hits while walking none.
Max Scherzer racks up six strikeouts in a scoreless outing 😤 #SpringTraining pic.twitter.com/ujIyMFMNKF
— MLB (@MLB) March 8, 2025
Unfortunately for Scherzer and the Blue Jays, the veteran missed his start on Thursday due to a sore thumb, though it seems like a minor injury.
Despite the strong start to his spring, it's clear that Scherzer's not the same guy who was in the Cy Young conversation for most of the last decade. But if his early returns are any indication, the Blue Jays' bold offseason move could pay off in what's now a suddenly wide-open AL East.