Blue Jays veteran Max Scherzer to return from IL, start at Nationals on Monday on his 42nd birthday

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Max Scherzer is back just in time for his 42nd birthday.

The veteran pitcher will come off the injured list and start for the Blue Jays on Monday night to kick off Toronto’s series with the Washington Nationals. Scherzer will turn 42 on Monday.

It will mark Scherzer's seventh start this season. He's been off and on the IL all year, and was last placed there in mid-June due to back spasms and a thumb injury.

"I think just talking to him and understanding where he was physically and how he has recovered from the rehab outing in Buffalo," Blue Jays manager John Schneider said Sunday, via The Associated Press. "Maybe a little bit limited in pitch count, but I think he kind of checked all the boxes."

Scherzer is in the middle of his 19th MLB season, and his second with the Blue Jays. He arrived in Toronto last season and helped the team reach the World Series, where they fell to the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Scherzer will enter his start Monday night with a 1-4 record and a career-worst 10.23 ERA. He struck out seven and threw 56 pitches in his last rehab start Wednesday with the team's Triple-A affiliate in Buffalo.

Scherzer has not pitched in Washington since the 2023 campaign. He spent seven seasons with that franchise, the longest stint of his career, and he picked up one of his two World Series rings with the Nationals.

The Blue Jays (48-58) are last in the AL East standings. The Boston Red Sox beat them 6-1 on Sunday afternoon at Fenway Park to wrap up that three-game series. That marked their seventh loss in the first 10 games out of the All-Star break.

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