In his first game action since undergoing back surgery during the offseason, three-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer is set to make a minor league rehab start Wednesday night. The 39-year-old Texas Rangers right-hander will start for Triple-A Round Rock at home against Salt Lake, throwing about 50 pitches against the Los Angeles Angels affiliate after throwing 40 in a simulated game last Friday.
Rangers manager Bruce Bochy and Scherzer confirmed details of the rehab start. Scherzer underwent surgery on Dec. 15 to repair a herniated disc in his lower back, which followed his exit from Game 3 of the World Series with back discomfort. An MRI done after the World Series victory showed inflammation in Schecer’s back. Despite initially feeling better, he later experienced nerve pain in his leg and received two epidural injections. A second MRI revealed a herniated disc that required surgery.
Scherzer joined the Rangers last summer as a trade deadline acquisition, making eight starts before missing the final two weeks of the regular season and the first two rounds of the playoffs with a strained right shoulder muscle. With 3,367 career strikeouts, Scherzer leads all active pitchers by 21 (more than Justin Verlander), and ranks second among active pitchers with 214 wins and 448 starts.