Max Scherzer is not a fan of the pitch clock. Sound familiar? That's because this isn't the first the New York Mets ace has voiced his displeasure toward Major League Baseball's newest rule.
The three-time Cy Young Award winner has struggled to begin the 2023 season, allowing eight earned runs in his two starts, striking out just eight hitters while walking four.
According to Jon Heyman, one NL scout said that the pitch clock will “greatly affect” older pitchers, such as Scherzer and fellow Mets ace Justin Verlander.
“Not only do they have to pitch quickly, but between-inning breaks are shorter, and when the offense isn't producing, they get even shorter times to rest,” the scout said.
Scherzer said there is some merit to that but won't make excuses for his poor outings.
“I have to do something about it. I can't just make excuses,” Scherzer said. “This is on me. I'm not going to sit here and complain about it.”
Though the Mets on paper have one of the best starting rotations in baseball, they also have one of the oldest. Scherzer is 38 years old, Verlander is 40, Carlos Carrasco is 36 and Jose Quintana is 34.
The pitch clock has done its job in terms of reducing the duration of games across the league. The impact it will have on some of the games older pitchers who can still bring it doesn't look promising at the moment. It will be interesting to see if these first two starts were just a fluke for Max Scherzer or a sign of things to come.
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