For the second time this season the Texas Rangers ‘acquire’ the same key pitcher

Texas Rangers GM Chris Young gave himself the tiniest sliver of outs when he warned us that pitcher Max Scherzer was “unlikely” to pitch in the postseason.

How “unlikely” out became “definitely back” is a surprise to everyone but the pitcher himself. He had been telling any creature with ears that he could come back for the playoffs, and now he is.

On Monday afternoon before the start of Game 2 between the Texas Rangers and Houston Astros in the American League Championship Series brought to you by Buc-ee’s, manager Bruce Bochy said that Scherzer will start Game 3.

Game 3 of the series will be at 7 p.m. on Wednesday at Globe Life Mall.

Expect Scherzer to be good for about 70 pitches; any pitch after that will depend on how well he is pitching. How he feels. The score.

This is not some emergency, desperate button the Rangers are pushing. He’s been cleared, and he wants to do this.

Call this the most fortunate of “deadline acquisitions” for a pitching staff that has been rolling in the playoffs.

“He ready. That’s why he’s starting Game 3,” Bochy said before Game 2. “A few days ago back home he threw 69 pitches to hitters and came out of that fine. And during that time he maintained his stamina stuff. So he was available (for Game 1). In fact, he said he wanted to pitch yesterday if needed, if it went extra innings or something.

“He’s good to go. He’s excited. Believe me, he’s been wearing me out a little bit, just assuring us that, ‘Hey, I’m healthy, I’m ready to go.’”

>> BREAKING NEWS <<

Today's other top stories in Fort Worth:

• ‘She chose ... murder’: Wife gets 12 years for killing husband who wanted divorce

• Neighborhood protest defeats zoning for used car lot

• Violent robbery at Walgreens in Lake Worth with electric baton

Get free alerts when news breaks.

Scherzer has not pitched since Sept. 12 when he left a start in the sixth inning against the Toronto Blue Jays with an uncertain injury.

Tests and evaluations revealed it was a strain in his upper right arm; the day after that start, Rangers general manager Chris Young announced that Scherzer was out for the season, and “likely” the playoffs.

Normally in these situations “likely” means “The sun is ‘likely’ to come up,” or “The Dallas Cowboys are ‘likely’ to disappoint their fans.”

It was the second depressing blow to a pitching staff that lost starter Jacob deGrom earlier in the year to a season-ending arm injury.

When the Rangers traded infield prospect Luisangel Acuña to the New York Mets at the trade deadline for Scherzer he was the most prized pitcher on the trade market. Scherzer was brought in to be deGrom’s replacement.

In Scherzer’s eight starts as a Ranger, he posted a 3.20 ERA, and was the anchor to a rotation that needed one. When he suffered the injury, the reasonable thought was the timetable would not allow him to come back in 2023, but be healthy for the start of 2024.

“In some ways I was almost relieved that it’s not worse. It’s not surgery,” Scherzer told the media the day the diagnosis was announced. “Talking with the doctors, I fully expect to make a full recovery.”

The question was when.

Typically the injury Scherzer sustained takes about one month of rest to heal. It’s been a little bit more than a month, but we’re not talking about a 25-year-old pitcher. Scherzer is 39, and his right arm has more mileage than a used U-Haul truck.

This man has been in the Major Leagues since 2008, and pitched nearly 3,000 innings in the regular and postseason combined.

He’s a borderline Hall of Fame pitcher who built a reputation based on a right arm that appears to be made of equal parts silly putty, Gorilla Glue, a rubber garden hose, caulk, and duct tape.

“Nobody knows his body better than him,” Bochy said. “He’s unbelievable at just telling us where he’s at, how close he is and things like that.”

Scherzer is no longer close but ready to pitch for the Rangers in the playoffs, thus completing the unexpected transition from unlikely out to definitely in.