Max Scherzer faltered in his last inning of work on Opening Day, but overall, the veteran still managed to turn in a quality start, allowing three runs on four hits to go along with six strikeouts over six innings of work in a season-opening win for the Mets.
It was Scherzer’s first time pitching in a game that counts with MLB’s new pitch timer rules, and his outing did not lead to him changing his mind when it comes to his feelings about the clock. In fact, it only reinforced those emotions.
“I love the pace, I don't like the clock,” Scherzer said. “I’ll double down on that. I think the umpire should have the discretion to turn the clock off.”
Scherzer pointed to a bizarre violation when the Mets were charged with a strike call after Pete Alonso took too long getting back to first base following a foul ball, and challenged reporters to support the enforcement of the rule. It clearly isn’t Scherzer’s favorite aspect of what is the new reality of baseball, but in terms of what he was able to do on the field, he came away mainly satisfied with his season-opening performance, in which he didn’t allow a run into he faded in the sixth.
“I was executing pitches all day long,” Scherzer said. “I ran into a little trouble there in the sixth. Just a couple extra hits and a homer kind of puts a sour taste in your mouth finishing the day, but the guys battled all day. I was getting run support.”
Follow Ryan Chichester on Twitter: @ryanchichester1
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