Scherzer reports feeling a little thumb soreness after throwing 5 shutout innings in his 2024 debut

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Texas Rangers right-hander and three-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer indicated he felt a little thumb soreness a day after throwing five scoreless innings in his season debut.

Rangers manager Bruce Bochy said it was only natural that Scherzer might be feeling a little sore. Scherzer has a bullpen session scheduled for Tuesday and is on track to pitch again Friday at Baltimore.

“I’m not surprised he’s a little sore,” Bochy said Monday before the Rangers' game against the Milwaukee Brewers. “I talked about this a little earlier. You go down and do your rehab, but there’s something about when you get into a major league stadium and get the juices going and adrenaline going. He’s going to turn it up a notch, which he did. We’ll see how he’s doing the next couple of days.”

Scherzer had been removed from a rehabilitation appearance in late April with thumb soreness after undergoing surgery in mid-December to repair a herniated disk in his lower back.

The 39-year-old worked his way back and was outstanding Sunday in a 4-0 victory over the Kansas City Royals. Scherzer retired 15 of the 16 batters he faced, including each of the first 13. He struck out four and walked nobody, and 39 of his 57 pitches were strikes.

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