Max Scherzer allows 7 runs while getting 2 outs, raising concerns for Blue Jays as playoffs near

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Max Scherzer has struggled to escape the first inning unscathed. On Friday night, he didn't get out of the first at all.

The veteran Blue Jays right-hander was pulled after two-thirds of an inning, the shortest start without an injury of his 18-year career. Scherzer allowed seven runs on seven hits while getting two outs, and Toronto went on to lose 20-1 to the Kansas City Royals.

Scherzer said he wasn't overly concerned.

“We’ll deep dive and figure out what was going on, look at more advanced things,” he said. “But when I went back and looked at the location of some of the pitches, I’m actually OK with it. In that regard, you kind of flush it and move on.”

Blue Jays manager John Schneider called it “a weird outing” from a player who's likely bound for the Hall of Fame.

“Over the course of his career you don’t see that very often from Max, barring an injury,” Schneider said. “They came out swinging and he kind of just left things in the middle.”

Toronto leads the AL East, and the club would love to have an effective Scherzer in the playoffs. The 41-year-old is a two-time World Series champion, winning titles with Washington in 2019 and Texas in 2023.

But this has been an outlier of a season for Scherzer.

He has a 5.06 ERA — by far the worst of his career — in 16 starts. And the beginning of games has been a particular issue. Scherzer has allowed multiple runs in the first inning in each of his last four starts, and his ERA over that span is 10.93.

He does not have a scoreless outing and has completed seven innings just twice.

On Friday, Scherzer allowed the first six batters to reach, yielding a three-run homer to Salvador Perez and giving up five runs before recording an out. Michael Massey hit a one-out, two-run homer to make it 7-1, and after Carter Jensen hit a ground-rule double — his second two-bagger of the inning — Scherzer was pulled.

“You never expect Max to not get through the first inning. But I think you want to see a little bit better location, you want to see a little bit more stuff on the breaking ball,” Schneider said. “They kind of came out hot. It comes down to executing pitches and putting them where he wants to.”

Scherzer believes his location wasn’t off by much.

“There’s only one pitch that’s in the middle of the plate,” he said. “Outside of that, it’s not like I’m hanging sliders, hanging curveballs right in the middle of the plate. They got to some pitches that were in a good area that they put a better swing on. Made a good pitch, they made a better swing.”

Schneider doesn’t expect Friday’s outing to change anything about Scherzer’s future in the rotation.

“It’s a weird outing to go two-thirds of an inning and throw a lot of pitches,” he said. “But I don’t think that will affect him going forward. It won’t make his pitch count any lower. Going forward he’ll be on a normal workload and kind of normal pitch count.”

What does Scherzer look to do going forward?

“Play well and win,” he said.

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

Toronto Blue Jays starting pitcher Max Scherzer throws during the first inning of a baseball game against the Kansas City Royals, Friday, Sept. 19, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

Toronto Blue Jays starting pitcher Max Scherzer throws during the first inning of a baseball game against the Kansas City Royals, Friday, Sept. 19, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

Toronto Blue Jays starting pitcher Max Scherzer watches from the dugout after coming out of the game during the first inning of a baseball game against the Kansas City Royals, Friday, Sept. 19, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A judge made no immediate decision Wednesday on Minnesota's request to suspend the Trump administration's immigration crackdown in the state, where federal agents have yanked people from cars and confronted angry bystanders demanding they pack up and leave.

Plumes of tear gas, the deployment of chemical irritants and the screech of protest whistles have become common on the streets of Minneapolis, especially since an immigration agent fatally shot Renee Good in the head on Jan. 7 as she drove away.

“What we need most of all right now is a pause. The temperature needs to be lowered," state Assistant Attorney General Brian Carter said during the first hearing in a lawsuit filed by Minnesota and the cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul.

U.S. District Judge Katherine Menendez promised to keep the case “on the front burner” and gave the U.S. Justice Department until Monday to file a response to the request for a restraining order. Local leaders say the government is violating free speech and other constitutional rights with the surge of law enforcement.

Menendez said the state and cities will have a few more days to respond.

“It is simply recognition that these are grave and important matters,” the judge said of the timetable, noting there are few legal precedents to apply to some of the key points in the case.

Justice Department attorney Andrew Warden suggested the slower approach set by Menendez was appropriate.

The judge is also handling a separate lawsuit challenging the tactics used by Immigration and Customs Enforcement and other federal officers when encountering protesters and observers. A decision could be released this week.

The Department of Homeland Security says it has made more than 2,000 arrests in the state since early December and is vowing to not back down. The Pentagon is preparing to send military lawyers to Minneapolis to assist, CNN reported.

“What we see right now is discrimination taking place only on the basis of race: Are you Latino or are you Somali? And then it is indiscriminate thereafter,” Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey told Fox News. “In other words, they are pulling people off the streets. They have pulled U.S. citizens off the streets and you don’t need to take my word for it at this point. This has been very well documented."

The president of Oglala Sioux Tribe in South Dakota said four tribal members were detained while at a homeless camp in Minnesota last week. Three remained in custody late Tuesday.

“Enrolled tribal members are citizens of the United States by statute and citizens of the Oglala Sioux Nation by treaty,” said tribe President Frank Star Comes Out, who demanded their release.

Associated Press reporters Ed White in Detroit and Graham Lee Brewer in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, contributed.

Federal officers stand guard after detaining people outside of Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building, Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)

People visits a makeshift memorial for Renee Good, who was fatally shot by an ICE officer last week, Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)

A person is detained by federal agents near the scene where Renee Good was fatally shot by an ICE officer last week, Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)