Curt Schilling Says Rangers RHP Max Scherzer Must Prove He's Healthy Within 'First 5-10 Pitches' | OutKick Hot Mic with Hutton & Withrow

Texas Rangers right-hander Max Scherzer, 39, will start on the mound Wednesday in a critical Game 3 against the Houston Astros. Despite all the talk of uncertainty around Scherzer's results, the three-time Cy Young award winner is ready to go.

Max Scherzer Will Let Us Know Early On If He's Ready For October

OutKick Hot Mic with Hutton & Withrow previewed Max Scherzer's return with MLB legend Curt Schilling — host of OutKick's "The Curt Schilling Baseball Show."

Scherzer suffered a low-grade strain of his teres major muscle in his shoulder Sept. 12, unable to finish the game or the regular season with the upper right arm injury.

With a commanding start, Scherzer can propel the Rangers one step closer to the AL pennant. Texas holds a 2-0 series advantage.

The question looms: will Mad Max bring his A-game in his first start in over a month?

Schilling shared with Jonathan Hutton and Chad Withrow that fans will be able to gauge Scherzer's night within the first 5-10 pitches, and that it'll all boil down to command for the ace.

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Hutton asked Schilling: "How quickly will you know, watching Scherzer on the mound, if he's got it or not? How soon? How much time does it take the manager to figure it out?"

Schilling delved deep into Scherzer's potential for Wednesday's Game 3.

"I mean, I'll have an idea, probably within 5 to 10 pages. It's very, very easy, and, you know, I said the other day before the Arizona-Philadelphia game, you know, if you're a fan watching at home and you want to understand if there's a difference.

"There's good misses and bad misses. When a guy is throwing on the inside corner and ... if you see the catcher's elbow as he catches the ball, that's a big miss. because to see the catcher's elbow, he's got to go across the plate or he's got to go this way with a miss. That's kind of how I'm looking at command. ... Control is the ability to throw strikes. Command is the ability to manipulate the ball inside the strike zone."

"You have to have command in October."

Watch OutKick Hot Mic w/ Hutton & Withrow live from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.

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