Scherzer underwent surgery on Dec 15 to fix a herniated disk in his back
Three-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer continues to work his way back to the major league pitching mound. Scherzer underwent back surgery during the offseason, but he was able to throw 52 pitches during a recent minor league rehab start.
He did surrender three runs on five hits during the outing, but the way Scherzer's body responds to the rehab remains his and the Texas Rangers' primary focus.
"I like where everything is at," Scherzer told the Dallas Morning News. "Physically, I feel good. Especially in that third (inning), getting out there to face the last hitter, I still felt like I had something in the tank to go out there and do that. That's just part of the process of how you build up."
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Max Scherzer, #31 of the Texas Rangers, looks on from the dugout against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field on Aug. 22, 2023 in Phoenix. (Norm Hall/Getty Images)
Scherzer will likely need to make at least one more minor league start before he is able to rejoin the Rangers. Once Scherzer wrapped up his rehab start with Triple-A Round Rock, he decided to weigh in on some of the issues currently swirling around umpires throughout the MLB.
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The two-time World Series champion offered a potential solution to the ongoing problems by suggesting the league implement a regulation system for umpires.
Max Scherzer, #31 of the Texas Rangers, walks off the field after leaving the game due to injury in the fourth inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks during Game Three of the World Series at Chase Field on Oct. 30, 2023 in Phoenix. (Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
Scherzer did point out that he believes that the majority of umpires do a good job, but the system would penalize umpires who continually fail to accurately call balls and strikes.
The lower rated umpires would eventually be demoted to the minor league level.
Texas Rangers starting pitcher Max Scherzer stretches his arm as he leaves the team's baseball game against the Toronto Blue Jays with an injury during the sixth inning on Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2023, in Toronto. (Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press via AP)
"We need to rank the umpires," Scherzer asserted. "Let the electronic strike zone rank the umpires. We need to have a conversation about the bottom — let's call it 10% — whatever you want to declare the bottom is, and talk about relegating those umpires to the minor leagues."
The minor leagues already utilize an automated strike zone.
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Chantz Martin is a sports writer for Fox News Digital.
