Max Scherzer may be among the first Blue Jays players to smile at the news that C.B. Bucknor is headed for the exit after 2026.
Bucknor is one of six MLB umpires set to retire after that season, along with Laz Díaz, Brian O'Nora, Lance Barksdale, Marvin Hudson, Tony Randazzo and Andy Fletcher. The 63-year-old has been working big league games since 1996, and over that stretch he has built a reputation for plenty of questionable calls.
For Scherzer, the news lands with a little extra bite. The future Hall of Famer has spent his entire career dealing with Bucknor, and a moment from a 2025 game at Rogers Centre made the frustration impossible to miss. In that game, the Blue Jays and Boston Red Sox were both growing more irritated with Bucknor’s strike zone, and Scherzer responded with a coin flip gesture aimed at the umpire’s calls.
The clip, posted to X by Jomboy Media, took off quickly and reached 3.4 million views as of this writing.
Scherzer later addressed the incident on a Blue Jays podcast earlier this year and said he was fined for it. He said, "No one knew where the strike zone was, on both sides, and so that game was very inconsistent… Of course, it got on TV and then I’ve got to get a suspension." He added that he issued a personal apology to Bucknor the next day.
The retirement news is also drawing attention because it comes with the Automated Ball-Strike Challenge System now in place. Bucknor has nine challenges on record, with seven overturned, a 77.8% over turn rate that is the highest among all umpires.
There is also the matter of Bucknor’s health. He has not worked a game since April 1, when he took a 100.2 mph fastball off his face mask.
The pitch came from Milwaukee’s Jacob Misiorowski in a Brewers-Rays game. Tampa catcher Nick Fortes got a piece of it, but not enough to keep it from hitting Bucknor after it caromed off the bat.
Bucknor went down, was checked by the training staff, and was removed from the game, though he was able to get up on his own. He has remained sidelined for health reasons since then, which could be another sign that he’ll step away once 2026 is done.
And Scherzer, of course, may not be around much longer either. The 41-year-old has not had a strong season for Toronto and is already dealing with his third injury of the year.
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