Three Possible Landing Spots for Max Scherzer
When it comes to starting pitching, 37-year-old ace Max Scherzer is at the top of the free-agent market. Scherzer spent 2021 split between the Washington Nationals and Los Angeles Dodgers, finishing out the season with a 2.46 ERA, 0.86 WHIP, and 2.97 FIP over 179 innings pitched.
Despite going on his 14th MLB season, Scherzer has somehow become even more dominant, posting a 5.2 WAR and career-low ERA and WHIP in one of the toughest divisions in Major League baseball.
Three-time Cy Young award winner Max Scherzer has been vocal in the past in terms of teams he’d consider signing with, with many teams in search of starting pitching this off-season.
While there are very solid starting pitcher options, among them Marcus Stroman and Zack Grienke. None of them are Max Scherzer.
Between the Padres, Yankees, Angels, Mariners, and Mets, Scherzer definitely has his options. It’s predicted that the all-star pitcher will sign with a team within the upcoming week.
A lot has happened within the past few days including the Mets offering Scherzer a 40 million dollar per year contract according to SNY’s Andy Martino. Scherzer has previously been honest about the unlikelihood of ending up in flushing.
Per Jon Heyman of MLB Network, Scherzer is expected to make a decision before Major League Baseball’s impending lockout
Max Scherzer may very well just end right back up in Los Angeles with the Dodgers. Yet with trade rumors running rampant, let’s take a look at some possible places Scherzer may land, as well as dive into why others just aren’t realistic.
Los Angeles Angels
It’s no secret that the Los Angeles Angels are on the hunt for starting pitching. With the franchise singing Noah Syndergaard to a one-year 21 million dollar contract earlier this month, it’s expected the team will continue to go after other aces on the market.
Considering that the Angels have two of the best baseball players in recent MLB history, it’s only fair that they add some rotation depth for Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani.
After a few years with minimal additions made, the Angels are coming out swinging (no pun intended) this off-season with some big additions to their roster.
Max Scherzer had previously been linked to the Angels before the midseason trade deadline, ultimately ending up with the Dodgers.
The Angels’ starting pitching rotation currently includes Shohei Ohtani, Noah Syndergaard, Jose Suarez, Reid Detmers, and Jaime Barria with the latter three having sub-competitive numbers this past season.
So to say that the team is in need of some reinforcement is a major understatement.
The addition of Scherzer could greatly help the Angels’ goal of being a contending team for the first time in a long time, and give the Astros some competition in the AL West which has been a weaker division the past few seasons.
Los Angeles Dodgers
Over the past few weeks, Max Scherzer has reportedly shown more interest in remaining on the west coast, making the likelihood of him remaining with the Los Angeles Dodgers higher than expected.
Scherzer had an insane record with the team going 7-0 in the regular season before having a rather troubling outing against the Braves. Yet, considering the Braves then went to win it all, it’s not all that concerning.
The Dodgers have a winning mentality, being the 2020 world series winners and reaching the postseason almost every year in the past 10 years.
He’d also pitch alongside some of the best pitchers in baseball which is a very big selling point.
Yet at the end of the day, he wanted to test free agency for a reason and he has not been a free agent in a long time, spending 7 years with the Nationals.
Scherzer is in high demand and has the chance to have some more control over where he ends up for the first time in a while, as well as the fact that wherever he lands he’s most likely going to be there for three or four years.
The Dodgers have seemed to be the favorite in talks of where Scherzer will end up, but only time will tell.
New York Mets
Despite Scherzer previously saying that he doesn’t have any interest in signing with the Mets, money can do wonders in terms of persuading athletes to change their minds. Even with Scherzer having a preference for the west coast, the 8x all-star played in Washington DC for 7 years, showing he couldn’t have had too much of an issue with it.
The Mets are in the middle of building an empire and have the money for Scherzer to be a part of it in the upcoming years, with the franchise offering the RHP 40 million dollars a year over an unknown length according to Andy Martino.
With the expected length bringing Scherzer into his 40s the Mets must be confident in his ability to stay healthy and competitive during that timeframe.
A team with Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer pitching back to back in the rotation seems ridiculously unfair, but no Mets fan is ever going to complain about that with the history they’ve had to sit through.
After losing Noah Syndergaard to the Angels and the high possibility of Marcus Stroman leaving New York, the team needs another ace in flushing and Max Scherzer could definitely be the answer to their prayers with Kevin Gausman signing with Toronto.
Next. 3 moves for the Dodgers this offseason. dark
Overall
There’s no telling where Max Scherzer will go because there are so many possibilities, after an amazing 2021 season the Giants could throw their name in the running, as well as the Yankees who were plagued with pitching injuries last season. But wherever he ends up he’s expected to dominate and add a level of passion and competitive spirit that any team can use in today’s baseball atmosphere.