The Los Angeles Dodgers evened the World Series on Saturday with a 5-1 win over the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre and now get set to face a former teammate in Max Scherzer.
Scherzer is in his 18th season and looking to win a third World Series championship. He had a brief stint with the Dodgers during the 2021 season, when the team won 106 games but were eliminated by the Atlanta Braves in the National League Championship Series.
Both Scherzer and the Dodgers have become plenty familiar with each other over the years, and the right-hander said he will stick to a simple game plan when facing his former team.
“Yeah, it’s the ultimate chess game. They’re making moves, I’m making moves. That’s just baseball,” Scherzer said. “But it’s been like that for years for me now.
“I understand how everybody wants to attack me, how I want to attack them. At the end of the day, you got to go out there and compete and you got to throw strikes. It kind of gets back down to the basics.
“So you can try and make it as advanced as you want, but a lot of times it’s the more simple approach that works better. You got to go out there and want to win.”
Scherzer has faced the Dodgers 19 times (17 starts) in his career, going 5-6 with a 2.38 ERA and 1.05 WHIP across 109.2 innings pitched. One of those outings came in August, when the veteran started opposite Clayton Kershaw in an entertaining game.
The future Hall of Famers exchanged autographed jerseys after the Dodgers’ 5-1 win.
Scherzer struggled during the regular season but turned in a solid start against the Seattle Mariners in Game 4 of the American League Championship Series, allowing two runs on three hits over 5.2 innings pitched.
Scherzer is now poised to make MLB history as the first player to pitch in the World Series for four different teams. Lonnie Smith is the lone position player to appear on four teams in the World Series.
Max Scherzer praises Clayton Kershaw
Scherzer, now 41, is one of the best pitchers of his generation, along with Kershaw.
Scherzer discussed his relationship with the left-hander, as well as current Blue Jays bench coach and former Dodgers manager Don Mattingly, who is in the World Series for the first time.
“Yeah, Kershaw and I are great,” Scherzer said. “We have a great relationship. But right now it’s two teams, we’re competing, we’re both playing for a ring right now.
“So, you know, obviously I wish him the best. I always think highly of him and everything he’s done in his career and what he’s meant to the Dodgers. Nothing but respect for everything that he’s done.
“Donnie, to be able to get an opportunity like this, so happy that I get to be on his team and have this moment with him.”
Have you subscribed to the Dodger Blue YouTube channel? Be sure to ring the notification bell to watch player interviews, participate in shows and giveaways, and stay up to date on all Dodgers news and rumors!
