Max Scherzer had two stints on the injured list because of oblique issues this year, and a rough outing in Atlanta after two strong post-IL starts in September brought back some worry about it.
Fear not, though: Scherzer has no limitations whatsoever, and is ready to roll in Game 1 of the Mets-Padres Wild Card Series Friday night.
"Going into this start, I'm good," Scherzer said Thursday. "I made it back to 100 pitches, and I'm not limited by this oblique at all."
Scherzer did throw 91 and 101 in his last two starts, and had a 2.29 ERA this season – but it's hard not to remember the Scherzer that had a tired arm in the 2021 playoffs with the Dodgers just as much as the bulldog that came out of the bullpen to lock down Game 5 of the 2019 NLDS, three days after the threw seven innings in Game 3.
His synopsis on how he feels was a succinct "great," and he's ready for the pressure of the biggest Mets game in seven years.
"I don't look at having pressure as a problem, it's a privilege. I want to be in these situations, I want to be competing for all the marbles," he said. "You have to be on a good team to do this and you'll have to face the best teams, best players to call yourself the best. This is what you look forward to."
There's still wonder about who will pitch Game 2, given the Mets' flip-flop of potential options, but Scherzer said he knows it's going to take everything the Mets have no matter what to advance.
"They're good – it's going to take everything out of us to advance. There's no such thing as a cakewalk in the postseason," Scherzer said. "Respect for what the Padres can do, especially up and down in the lineup. They have a lot of ways to beat you. You have to pitch with every pitch you got and be able to execute. You make a mistake, you lose."
And if they do advance, well, the reason the Mets are wavering on Game 2 is because they already know that to pitch Scherzer twice in the NLDS, he'd have to go at least once on short rest – which he said he'll worry about if they get to the Division Series.
"Worry about that at a different point in time," Scherzer said. "We have a three-game set, all I have to do is pitch Game 1. We'll figure out the rest later. We have to win this series first."
Scherzer is 7-6 record with a 3.22 ERA and that one save in his postseason career, and the best case scenario for the Mets is 8-6 and a little bit better ERA come Saturday morning.
Follow Lou DiPietro on Twitter: @LouDiPietroWFAN
Listen live to WFAN via:
Audacy App | Online Stream | Smart Speaker
Follow WFAN on Social Media:
Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | YouTube | Twitch
