TORONTO — John Schneider called Max Scherzer’s start for the Buffalo Bisons last Friday the “most watched triple-A game in a while for me.”

The Toronto Blue Jays manager amended that statement on Wednesday afternoon while chatting with media in his office at Rogers Centre.

“Probably today’s (the) second-most or maybe takes the top spot,” Schneider said with a grin.

His comments underscored the importance of Wednesday’s rehab start for Scherzer, who’s nearing a return to the Blue Jays’ rotation after a long recovery from a right thumb issue that’s limited him to just three innings for the big-league club.

Scherzer proceeded to toss 4.1 innings on 75 pitches Wednesday evening for the Bisons, who were facing the Boston Red Sox’s triple-A affiliate at Polar Park in Worcester, Mass. Interestingly, right-hander Tanner Houck took the mound for the Red Sox in a matchup of major-league right-handers on rehab stints.

This marked Scherzer’s second start for the Bisons, and, from both a pitch count and velocity perspective, it was an improvement over his output last Friday. The righty sat at 92.5 m.p.h. with his fastball while topping out at 94.2 m.p.h. He mixed in his curveball, cutter, changeup and slider to generate 11 whiffs on 36 swings.

The 40-year-old was sharp in the first inning, striking out two batters and working around a walk to big-leaguer Wilyer Abreu, who was also making a rehab appearance.

He was even more impressive in the second frame, mowing down all three Red Sox hitters with swinging strikeouts.

In total, Scherzer allowed just one hit during the scoreless outing, walking two and striking out eight.

Additionally, outfielder Nathan Lukes, who was placed on the seven-day concussion list by the Blue Jays last week, collected three hits and five RBIs over his first four at-bats, highlighted by a three-run home run in the fifth inning off right-hander Jose De Leon.

Scherzer will likely rejoin the Blue Jays for his next start, which could come on Tuesday against the Guardians in Cleveland. Given Monday’s off day, that would ensure the veteran right-hander has five days of rest between outings.

“That’d be good,” acknowledged Schneider. “I know he talked about that in spring, kind of having like an extra day before you get into the season. So yeah, that would line up nicely.”

Bringing the future Hall-of-Famer back into the fold would benefit the 39-33 Blue Jays on many fronts.

“It would be huge just to have him knowing that you have that caliber of pitcher waiting on your staff every fifth day,” said Schneider. “It would be a nice shot in the arm.”

However, perhaps more importantly, Scherzer’s return would allow the Blue Jays to finally move away from the bullpen games that the club has regularly relied on to fill his spot in the rotation since the three-time Cy Young winner was placed on the injured list March 30. 

Scherzer, of course, has remained cautious all the while, repeatedly stating that his recurring thumb injury could flare up at any time.

“I’m not celebrating anything until I’m actually back in big-league games and recovering in big-league games,” he said following his start last Friday. “This thumb issue is a serious issue. I don’t declare myself out of the woods on this because I’ve got to be able to do this at the big-league level and recover at the big-league level.”

“I think he always thinks his stuff is ready, but I think it’s more the physical part and how he’s feeling during the outing tonight, tomorrow, and the days in between,” Schneider added on Wednesday. “So, that’s kind of where we’ve landed with him. He thinks he can strike everybody out right now, whether it’s seven in the morning or seven at night.

“He’s going to go after you, but I think it’s just how he feels, really.”