Texas Rangers pitcher Max Scherzer has been placed on the 15-day injured list with a left hamstring strain, bringing his injury-plagued season to an end with the Rangers out of playoff contention.

Scherzer, 40, had been scheduled to start Saturday night’s game against the visiting Seattle Mariners. Right-hander Dane Dunning (4-7, 5.38 ERA) will start in his place.

This marks Scherzer’s third trip to the injured list this season. He made just one start for the Rangers — a four-inning no-decision against Seattle last Saturday — after a six-week IL stint from July 31 to Sept. 13 with right shoulder fatigue. He started the season on IL recovering from back surgery, returning to the roster on June 23.

He finished the season at 2-4 with a 3.95 ERA in nine starts.

A 17-year veteran, Scherzer is 216-112 with a 3.16 career ERA and has collected three Cy Young Awards, eight All-Star appearances and two World Series titles.

Among active pitchers, he is second to Justin Verlander in wins, innings (2,878) and strikeouts (3,407).

The Rangers acquired Scherzer from the Mets at the 2023 trade deadline, but he has appeared in just 17 games with the Rangers. He’s 6-6 with a 3.57 ERA over 88 1/3 innings with 93 strikeouts.

In another move Saturday, the Rangers recalled rookie right-hander Gerson Garabito, 29, from Triple-A Round Rock. He is 0-2 with a 4.88 ERA, 10 walks and 19 strikeouts in 24 innings over 16 games (two starts) for Texas this season.

–Field Level Media