Questions were raised last year when the Toronto Blue Jays signed 41-year-old Max Scherzer as a starter. Although his 5.19 ERA from 17 starts wasn’t anything impressive, his 3 SOs from 4 innings in the World Series Game 7 had enough for the Jays to sign him again for 2026. But he is worse this season, currently standing with a 10.23 ERA. He entered the IL on April 27 and had his first start on Wednesday against the Philadelphia Phillies.

Struggle continued as Scherzer allowed 5 ER, including 2 HR and 3 BB. However, the fans are left unimpressed by how John Schneider rushed to his defense.

“You want to try to see what it looks like when he gets some consistent work and evaluate it then. I think he’s earned that,” Keegan Matheson quoted Schneider.

Considering Scherzer’s credibility as one of the oldest active veterans on the mound, it is expected that the Blue Jays manager would take a defensive route in dealing with the 3x Cy Young winner. Scherzer became the 11th pitcher in MLB history to record 3,500 strikeouts on Wednesday. So, the Jays might be going slow with him. Also, Schneider had a hard experience facing off against Scherzer in the 2025 ALCS Game 4 against the Seattle Mariners. As Schneider visited the mound to pull out Scherzer in the fifth, the veteran lived up to his “Mad Max” persona and yelled at his manager.

Scherzer ultimately pitched 5 2/3 innings, allowing only two runs and striking out five, leaving the game to a standing ovation and in line for the win. “I thought he was going to kill me. It was great. He locked eyes with me, both colors, and backed it up,” Schneider said after the game. So, it’s always risky to give up on Scherzer too early. The reason why Schneider wants to avoid “knee-jerk reactions” against Scherzer is despite the rough start on Wednesday.

However, losses are mounting for the Blue Jays, and with a current 33-36 record, fans wonder if John Schneider has the time to wait. On Wednesday, he had to deplete his bullpen and use six relievers to finish the game.

This is also not the first time that Scherzer struggled this year. On April 24, he surrendered seven runs on six hits, including three home runs against the Guardians. In another game on April 12, he allowed eight runs off two homers in 2.1 innings. So, fans have had enough and take to social media, demanding that Schneider make some uneasy decisions.

The Blue Jays fans are left unimpressed with John Schneider

Fans wonder if any more time left for experiments. “The team is sinking. This is no time for tryouts,” one fan said. “They’re not in a position from a standings standpoint to wait and see,” another added.

The Blue Jays are currently 7 games behind the table-topper, the Tampa Bay Rays, and ranked 5th in the AL Wild Card race. The A’s in 4th place have the same 33 wins as the Jays. Thus, to survive in such a tight scene, it’s time for John Schneider to go all out on experimenting. Hopefully, Scherzer would come back to his best soon, but by then, the Jays may slip far from the Wild Card race.

“Max is past his prime…use as a reliever,” one user remarked. “He’s been batting practice this whole season,” another agreed.

Scherzer has made only 9 regular-season relief appearances in his 19-year MLB career, tallying a 0.87 ERA. However, his 1-4 record this year proved how batters loved hitting him in 2026. He has pitched 22 innings so far this year and allowed 9 HRs, which sums up his struggle. But for John Schneider, a few more time needed to conclude on Scherzer. Fans don’t approve, though.

“I’m happy he got his milestone strikeout. Max deserves that. Incredible career. But 2026 Max Scherzer is a shell of himself. He’s a Hall of Famer, but it’s over. Time to grab the gun and put the horse out of its misery. Not only best for him, but the team this year if they wanna win,” one fan concluded on the veteran.

According to Schneider, Scherzer still finds himself physically fit. “I felt like I was able to pitch. Good fastballs, good changeups, good curveballs, good sliders,” Schneider quoted Scherzer. However, it is expected that he couldn’t deliver something that Tarik Skubal or Paul Skenes could do. However, for the Jays, till the time Jose Berrios, Cody Ponce, and Shane Bieber come back from the IL, it will be difficult to let Scherzer go.

An aggressive trade deadline could work wonders.