Looks like Max Scherzer believes in the Mets.
He believes in the Mets money, no doubt about it. Owner Steve Cohen, after losing to pitcher Steven Matz – who signed a four-year, $44 million deal with the Cardinals last week, makes Angry tweets are discussed a lot from Cohen – attracted a future Hall of Famer to his dance club for a substantial amount of money.
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The reported contract goes to the 37-year-old Scherzer, who has made the top five of Cy Young’s polls – including three wins – each of baseball’s past eight seasons (not counting withdrawal campaigns). short of 2020), no doubt- bop: three years, 130 million dollars . That’s an average annual value of $43.3 million per year. Next on highest AAV list : Mike Trout and Gerrit Cole, with $36 million.
That’s a huge jump, from $36 million to $43.3 million. Especially for a 37-year-old pitcher. But the Mets believe in Scherzer’s ability to help them avoid the fallout that has affected their 2021 season, for good reason; The team led 29-45 in the second half of last season while Scherzer’s two teams (Nationals and Dodgers) finished a perfect 13-0 in his second half, with Scherzer posting an ERA of 2.21.
So it’s no surprise that the Mets believe in Scherzer. But it’s at least a little surprising that the notoriously fierce and competitive Scherzer would agree to play for the Mets, given their recent track record and the many problems they’re still having with the franchise right now. Like, you know, find a manager for 2022 and beyond.
For the Mets, it’s not just about providing enough money to land Scherzer. Cohen has money. The hardest part of Project Sign Max has always been convincing him that the Mets have a plan that gives him a legitimate chance of winning the World Series championship under his last multi-year contract.
Check out what Scherzer had to say in the first press conference after he was traded to the Dodgers : “I’m glad I’m in an organization that wants to win and aim for the ultimate prize. That’s what we play the game to do. I’ve been in the league long enough to know those things don’t always happen and they don’t always fall into place. ”
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With the Nationals, Scherzer has veto power over any trades the team might want to make, so he has a lot of control in the process and gets the champions ready. The reigning World Series, a team that is moving fast to win more than 100 games. As a freelance agent, he has full and complete control over his destination.
That doesn’t necessarily mean Scherzer believes the Mets get to decide 100 games every year he’s there. But it does mean he thinks the team has a chance of competing for World Series titles. Let’s go back to the Dodgers press conference: “During the October baseball game, sometimes funny things happen,” he said.
Funny things like a National team that went 19-31 on fire, won 93 games and secured a spot in the wilds, then overcame the NL team of the knockout round and won four games. hit the road in the World Series to claim the franchise’s first-ever championship.
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That team was led by Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg’s 1-2 pitching punch, who combined for a 2.17 ERA in 66 innings of the third post-season. It’s not hard to see how Scherzer could envision him and Jacob deGrom doing something similar.
And, yes, the Mets still matter, plural. They need to hire a manager and basically the entire coaching staff. They could use a different starter, with Marcus Stroman unlikely to return and Noah Syndergaard now out of the Mets equation. They have central midfielders, Starling Marte, a big boost, and brought in midfielder Mark Canha and versatile midfielder Eduardo Escobar. They could use some sassy arms, especially a dose of forehand with Aaron Loupe – who has a 0.95 ERA in 65 games – signing the Angels.
Skeptical Mets fans will probably still be skeptical – they’ve seen too many – but the Mets have sold Max, and that should make them happy.
