Royals vs. Blue Jays August 25 game discussion

Jul 7, 2026; New York City, New York, USA; Kansas City Royals pitcher Seth Lugo (67) delivers a pitch during the first inning against the New York Mets at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect “You either die a hero or you live long enough t

What is the story about?

“You either die a hero or you live long enough to become the villain.” That’s one of the most famous quotes from 2008’s superhero film The Dark Knight. It’s also a quote that describes one Max Scherzer. Mad Max’s multi-color gaze has witnessed a lot of batters doing damage to his pitches recently, and he hasn’t spent all that much time on the mound. Over the last three years, he’s only tossed a total of 173.1 innings. His ERA by year is like Denali; it goes up and up and up:

2024: 3.95
2025: 5.19
2026: 7.40

And the last time Scherzer

made a start against the Royals, it was September 2025. Scherzer gave up seven runs and didn’t make it out of the first inning. Kansas City won 20-1. Now, I’m not expecting that level of dominance, but hoping for a similarly comfortable victory against an ailing veteran whose time has come might be a reasonable thing.