Blue Jays set to welcome Cease and Scherzer back as rotation health improves

The Toronto Blue Jays’ starting rotation, battered by injuries for much of the season, is beginning to look closer to what the club envisioned. Dylan Cease is scheduled to return on Tuesday against the Philadelphia Phillies, and Max Scherzer is set to follow a day later as Toronto wraps up its three-game series at Rogers Centre. The timing matters both for the short-term workload management of a thin staff and for the larger question of how many innings Toronto can reliably generate from its top arms as June plays out.

Cease’s return comes after a left hamstring strain that sent him to the injured list. According to MLB’s team report, the hamstring issue was described as mild and ultimately forced him to miss two starts after he exited his May 24 outing. He will be matched up in a marquee matchup with the Phillies’ Zack Wheeler, a pairing that underscores the point: Toronto is not simply getting innings back, it is getting them back in the form of a No. 1-caliber right man who was leading the American League in strikeouts when his IL stint began.

Cease has been one of Toronto’s clearest swing factors on the mound this year. The team notes he is carrying a 3.05 ERA with 92 strikeouts over 62 innings, numbers that help explain why the club has waited through the disruption rather than settling for lesser combinations. His absence has forced Toronto to rely more heavily on bullpen days and other starters, and the rotation’s instability has been a recurring theme in the team’s season to date.

Scherzer’s return is the second half of Toronto’s immediate repair job. MLB reported that the three-time Cy Young Award winner has been sidelined since late April with right forearm tendinitis and left ankle inflammation. At the time of his shutdown, Toronto had fewer options than it wanted, and Scherzer’s innings have been limited so far this season, with the team report citing 20 runs allowed over 18 2/3 innings (a 9.64 ERA) before he went on the IL.

Sportsnet added that manager John Schneider announced the same return sequence, with Cease starting Tuesday and Scherzer starting Wednesday. The outlet also noted that Scherzer made two rehab starts with Triple-A Buffalo and sounded upbeat after one of those outings, telling reporters that his body responded well and that his arm felt “great.” For a pitcher re-entering a major-league rotation after forearm and ankle issues, that type of reset matters as much as the calendar does.

The Blue Jays’ next step is to line up rotation logistics without risking setbacks. MLB indicated that Shane Bieber, another high-leverage piece in Toronto’s broader rotation mix, remains in rehab and is scheduled to make his fourth rehab start with Triple-A Buffalo on Thursday. The club’s report also pointed to the need for better results before activating Bieber, noting his early rehab outings had not yet been as strong as Toronto would prefer.

Even with Cease and Scherzer set to return, the upcoming Phillies series offers a practical test of Toronto’s depth and durability. Toronto dropped the opener of the set on Monday, 5-2, and the team is listed at 32-35 on the season. With two key starters rejoining in consecutive games, the emphasis for the Blue Jays is likely to be straightforward: stay healthy through the first two starts back, build consistent early innings, and see whether the staff can reduce the reliance on bullpen patches that have defined stretches of their campaign.

What to watch next is how quickly the new-look rotation settles into its rhythm. Cease will be the first marker on Tuesday, followed by Scherzer on Wednesday. After that, attention shifts to whether Bieber can produce enough in his rehab window to join the rotation without prolonging the “patchwork” era. For Toronto’s season, the goal is not just a stronger week on paper, it is creating the conditions for a steadier month ahead as the schedule tightens. But the injuries that sidelined both pitchers are the backdrop, and the club will likely treat workload and recovery with extra caution until the staff fully stabilizes.