Scherzer (thumb) avoids serious injury, due to make mound return soon

DUNEDIN, Fla. -- The Blue Jays can exhale. Max Scherzer¡¯s right thumb soreness is nothing serious, an MRI has shown, and he should be back on the mound over the next day or two.

Scherzer felt the soreness coming out of his start last weekend, so the Blue Jays were initially exercising caution with the 40-year-old veteran.

There should be plenty of time for Scherzer to jump right back on track, but any shift in scheduling at this point is a delicate thing. We saw last year how Kevin Gausman¡¯s delayed start to Spring Training impacted him early in the season, and while he still put together a very strong campaign, it¡¯s difficult for even baseball¡¯s best pitchers to catch up once they fall behind in camp.

As long as Scherzer progresses quickly back into the rotation, manager John Schneider expects that he can continue ramping up at a regular pace with 60-plus pitches his next time out. That¡¯s what the Blue Jays will hope for as they enter the home stretch of a Spring Training that, outside of Erik Swanson¡¯s forearm and elbow issues, has been fairly good on the health front. That sound you hear is the Blue Jays¡¯ front office knocking on wood.

Scherzer has looked fantastic in his early outings this camp, even though the veteran of 17 MLB seasons continues to reiterate that February and March results don¡¯t matter much. What matters is preparing and getting up to ¡°game speed,¡± which is so much different than throwing a bullpen session in front of a dozen teammates at 10 a.m. at the Blue Jays¡¯ quiet training complex. Still, the early glimpses have been impressive.

In Scherzer¡¯s last outing on Saturday against the Tigers, he threw 3 1/3 innings of one-hit ball with six strikeouts on 49 pitches (38 strikes). Next time out, Scherzer is likely scheduled to throw something in the range of the 71 pitches Chris Bassitt threw on Tuesday against the Twins in Dunedin.

Looking at the Blue Jays¡¯ rotation depth beyond their top five, there¡¯s a reason they¡¯ve kept Yariel Rodr¨ªguez stretched out all spring, even as the temptation to shorten him up into a bullpen role grows stronger. Lefty Eric Lauer is in camp as rotation depth, but the next level of rotation help is looking thin as Toronto waits on the return of Alek Manoah, who could finish his Tommy John rehab early in the second half of the season. Reliever Ryan Yarbrough and his rubber arm could even be considered if a few starts are needed.

For now, the Blue Jays can call this good news in what has been -- mostly -- a clean and successful camp.