February 23, 2020 11:24 AM : Scherzer struck out two over two scoreless innings Saturday in his spring debut while sitting in the mid-90s with his fastball, Jessica Camerato of MLB.com reports.
Analysis: The game itself got called due to rain after that, leaving Scherzer at only 22 pitches rather than the 30 the Nats planned for him to throw, but otherwise it was a successful start to Grapefruit League action for the 35-year-old ace. "Being able to throw all my pitches for strikes [felt good]," Scherzer said after the game. "All the offspeed, I thought I was able to execute those. I was losing kind of my fastball arm side a little more than I would like to. For me, I think that's a little mechanical, kind of getting in it, back in the swing of things. Then trying to take that adjustment into the next start." After failing to toss 200 or more innings last year for the first time since 2012, Scherzer has extra motivation to come out of the gate firing this season.