Mets ace Max Scherzer exits start with injury to left side

By MIKE FITZPATRICK
AP Baseball Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — Mets ace Max Scherzer removed himself from a start against the St. Louis Cardinals with discomfort in left side. He will have an MRI on Thursday. The three-time Cy Young Award winner left with two outs in the sixth inning and a 1-1 count on Albert Pujols. With two runners on, Scherzer threw a slider in the dirt and immediately signaled to the New York bench that he was done. Mets pitching coach Jeremy Hefner, manager Buck Showalter and a trainer came out of the dugout to visit Scherzer on the mound. After a quick discussion, the 37-year-old right-hander walked off the field. Scherzer threw 87 pitches and left with a 6-2 lead against his hometown team.