Texas Rangers' title defense is not off to a good start, but help is on the way.

But first, they need to be a little more patient and careful.

Ace pitcher Max Scherzer is set to enter rehab assignment. To prepare for that, he started throwing hitters under the supervision of pitching coach Mike Maddux.

In the mount are owner Ray Davis, general manager Chris Young, and manager Bruce Bochy, who feel optimistic about Scherzer's progress.

Scherzer threw 40 pitches to hitters on Tuesday, more than a month after he pitched 52 pitches in one rehab outing with Triple-A Round Rock.

The 39-year-old veteran makes sure he takes his recovery step-by-step to recover fully.

"Got to recover well from this," Scherzer told reporters. "Make sure my thumb is OK as I ramp back up into this. As long as I check that box, hopefully I can get out there on rehab."

As for Bochy, he feels optimistic that Scherzer is on track with his recovery.

Young added that Scherzer is "on the way."

"Max [Scherzer] is not far away," he said.

"I assume today went well. I saw him playing catch as well, and he's going in the right direction. He had a really good week. I think he was able to figure out some things that helped with his recovery and it's definitely trending the right direction. The next step will be for him to face some hitters and see how he bounces back and we'll continue to go from there."

Last March, Young said the veteran pitcher could be back by May.

Scherzer has been out since mid-December due to a herniated disk on his lower back and underwent surgery in the same month.

He was acquired by the Rangers from the New York Mets mid-season last year and was 4-2 with a 3.20 ERA in eight starts.

However, his high-profile move to Texas hit a snag when a muscle strain in his shoulder sidelined him.

He was able to return during the playoffs at the American League Championship Series but was forced out again in Game 3 because of a back injury.

Texas Ranger's injury woes

The Rangers are 29-31 in standings, 10th in the American League conference, and second in the AL West.

Injury is to blame for the struggle of the defending champs.

Aside from Scherzer, the team is also without starting pitcher Jon Gray and Evan Carter, who can only return on June 9.

Gray's return is more probable than Carter's, as he joined the bullpen on Monday.

He threw 40-50 pitches in a two-inning bullpen session and later stated that he no longer feels issues in his groin.

"I felt really good moving around, feeling athletic," he said. "It was a big day, but it was a lot of fun, it felt good to start moving again."

The team's injury list also has Josh Sborz and Carson Coleman out until the second week of this month.