The Blue Jays are trying to survive the final week of the regular season, and that puts a spotlight on the starting rotation. Toronto has been battered by injuries all year, and now AL Cy Young candidate Dylan Cease is reportedly dealing with shoulder inflammation.
Amid all that uncertainty, one veteran has stood out for the wrong reasons. Three-time Cy Young Award winner and eight-time All-Star Max Scherzer was named Toronto’s worst player of the 2026 season by Bleacher Report’s Zachary D. Rymer.
“When the Blue Jays re-signed Scherzer earlier this year, they likely didn't expect him to live up to his Hall of Fame future. They just needed him to anchor the back end of what looked like a strong rotation,” Rymer wrote.
That plan has not played out. Scherzer has made only 16 starts because of injuries and has put up a career-high 6.07 ERA.
“Instead, he's had the worst year of his career, making only 16 starts and posting a 6.07 ERA. Because of injuries, the pain of this performance has only been magnified in a Toronto rotation that has never really had momentum,” Rymer added.
Scherzer turned 42 in July, and the injury issues have piled up. He most recently dealt with back spasms, and earlier in April he was placed on the IL with right forearm tendinitis and left ankle inflammation.
He’s still a workhorse by reputation, but if Scherzer wants to keep extending his career, it may not happen in Toronto.
In Other News...
Former Blue Jays Catching Depth Story Took An Unexpected Turn
Robert Brooks, a former Blue Jays catching depth option, has called time on his playing career after spending years working his way through the minor league and independent league ranks. The 27-year-old appeared in 109 minor league games and also got into eight spring training games with Toronto, a reminder of how many players cycle through camp each year hoping to break through or stick around long enough to get another look.
Brooks went on to sign with the Hagerstown Flying Boxcars and played 114 games in one season there before announcing his retirement on Instagram, where he looked back on his baseball journey and the experiences that came with it. For a player whose path took him from Blue Jays camp to the independent game, the decision closes the book on a career built around persistence, even if the big-league door never fully opened. [Read more 🡒]
Blue Jays Fans Have Every Right To Question Schneiders Okamoto Decision
Kazuma Okamoto gave the Blue Jays exactly the kind of middle-of-the-order production they were looking for in 2026, leading the club in both home runs and RBIs. Even so, manager John Schneider usually parked him sixth or lower in the batting order, a choice that has only grown more puzzling as the season aged and the numbers piled up around him.
Okamotos work with runners in scoring position also took a noticeable step forward in September, which only sharpened the debate over how Toronto used him. For fans and analysts, the bigger question now is whether that lineup decision helped undercut the teams postseason hopes, and whether Schneider will have to answer for it once the offseason conversation begins. [Read more 🡒]
Blue Jays Season Just Became An Accountability Reckoning
The Blue Jays spent another afternoon staring at the same problem in a season that has slipped out of reach. Torontos 4-2 loss to the Orioles in the opener of a doubleheader officially pushed the club out of playoff contention, with Max Scherzer working five innings and allowing four earned runs as the lineup again came up short against a division opponent that had little trouble finishing the job.
At 77-81 with four games left, the focus in Toronto has shifted from October hopes to accountability and what comes next. Chris Bassitt got the win for Baltimore, and the Blue Jays now have to sort through a final stretch that will say as much about the organizations direction as any one game did. [Read more 🡒]