Is this Max Scherzer’s swan song?

Max Scherzer, the 42-year-old three-time Cy Young Award winner, hinted at a future announcement after his appearance in Game 1 of a doubleheader between the Blue Jays and the Orioles on Wednesday.

“I’ll probably say something here in the next couple days,” he mentioned, according to Sportsnet.

The future Hall of Famer, who has two World Series titles under his belt, struggled in his last outing, allowing four runs on four hits and three walks while striking out seven over five innings in a 4-2 loss.

Scherzer expressed a desire to pitch again on Sunday against the Reds for the season finale in front of the Toronto fans, noting it would require pitching on short rest.

“I don’t know if I want to publicly say, yet. I’d rather keep the blinders up and address once the season’s over,” Scherzer said. “I’m not limping to the finish line; I’m accelerating through the finish line. Want to keep the focus on just getting to finish line,” per Sportsnet.

His time in Toronto has been challenging, to say the least. After finishing last season with a 5.19 ERA over 17 starts, he’s managed a 6.14 ERA in 17 starts this year, largely due to injuries.

However, there have been glimpses of his former greatness. For instance, on August 30, he delivered seven shutout innings, allowing just one hit and one walk while striking out ten batters.

Post that stellar performance, Scherzer reflected on his ability to compete at a high level, especially when healthy, and was asked if such an outing was a sort of validation for him.

“No, because I knew,” he replied.

Scherzer currently ranks ninth on the all-time strikeouts list with 3,550, just four behind his former teammates, Justin Verlander, who is set to make his final career start for Detroit on Saturday.

An eight-time All-Star, Scherzer boasts a career wins above replacement (WAR) of 74.1, with a 3.29 ERA, 1.09 WHIP, and a 224-126 record over 3,040 ⅔ innings spanning across 19 seasons.

In postseason play, he has appeared in 33 games (28 starts), achieving a 3.78 ERA alongside 182 strikeouts in 157 ⅓ innings.

He was instrumental in leading the Nationals to their first-ever World Series title in 2019 and claimed another championship with the Rangers in 2023 following a midseason trade from the Mets.

Scherzer also has World Series experience from his time with Detroit in 2012 and participated in the last Fall Classic with the Blue Jays.