Washington is visiting Detroit, where current Nationals ace Max Scherzer will start against his former team Sunday. Scherzer blossomed into a star as a member of the Tigers, with whom he won his first Cy Young Award in 2013. At the conclusion of the next season, though, Scherzer signed a seven-year, $210MM contract with the Nationals after rejecting a $144MM extension from the Tigers. Scherzer, now a three-time Cy Young winner and a potential Hall of Famer, reflected on his Detroit departure Saturday, saying (via Chris McCosky of the Detroit News): “That’s just the business side. I didn’t feel slighted. That stuff just all takes care of itself. I don’t hold any grudges or anything like. When I look back on my time in Detroit, I have great memories here and great friends.” Scherzer also noted he and fellow righty Anibal Sanchez, teammates in Detroit and again in D.C., still lament they were never able to win a World Series with the Tigers. The club clinched playoff spots from 2011-14, each of the four seasons Scherzer and Sanchez were part of its rotation. Those teams earned one World Series berth, falling to the Giants in a 2012 sweep.
More on a few other pitchers…
- Pirates righty Chris Archer left his start against the Brewers on Friday after just four innings with left hip discomfort. However, it’s still unclear whether he’ll require a stint on the injured list. The club will reevaluate Archer when it returns to Pittsburgh on Monday, according to Adam Berry of MLB.com. Archer was already on the IL earlier this season with a thumb injury, and has come up well short of expectations when healthy. The 30-year-old has managed a discouraging 5.50 ERA/5.77 FIP in 73 2/3 innings.
- Angels righty JC Ramirez is at least one more rehab start from making his 2019 MLB debut, Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register tweets. Ramirez, who’s working back from April 2018 Tommy John surgery, made his fifth rehab start Saturday and threw five innings of two-run ball for Triple-A Salt Lake. His average fastball was sitting in the 88 to 91 mph range, according to Salt Lake broadcaster Steve Klauke. That’s down significantly from the 95.5 mean Ramirez posted in 2017, the last time he logged extensive major league action.
- Injured Diamondbacks righty Jon Duplantier’s most recent MRI on his shoulder yielded positive news, manager Torey Lovullo announced Saturday (via Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic). Still, the Diamondbacks aren’t any closer to determining how much more time Duplantier will miss. The 24-year-old has already sat out almost three weeks, having gone on the IL on June 12. With Luke Weaver and Taijuan Walker also injured, the Diamondbacks have cycled through Taylor Clarke, Zack Godley and Alex Young at the back of their rotation during Duplantier’s absence. Clarke and Godley have struggled mightily, though the former did turn in a solid five innings in a win over the Dodgers on Wednesday. Young just made his MLB debut Thursday and tossed five innings of one-run ball in a victory over San Francisco.
JC is looking real good with 9.00 ERA through 5 games… bring him up, he will fit in perfectly with this starting staff.
What an enormously different situation the Tigers would be in, if they resigned Max instead of Jordan a year later.
I don’t think it’d be an enormously different situation for the Tigers. As we’ve seen time after time, no one player can change the fortunes of a baseball team the way one guy can in the NBA or a QB can in the NFL.
Even though hindsight is 20/20, I remember no one was willing to give Max the 200+ he was seeking that offseason. Even the deal with the Nationals came with heavy deferrals. That lends me to believe no one would be willing to take on his money in the hypothetical deal that keeps him in Detroit while surrendering the prospect capital a player of his stature commands. This is assuming his only value towards the next contending Tiger team was the same as Verlander, as a trade piece.
Can you imagine the trade haul Max would bring? I mean look at what ChiSox got for Quintana. Or what Shelby Miller netted the Atlanta Braves.. Chris Archer.. Albeit, the tigers would probably be in a different mindset. Probably not trading JV or JD considering the state of the AL Central. I honestly think they would be a top 12 team in this league, with vastly different signings and acquisitions.
Oh Max, how I miss you. I’m glad to hear he doesn’t feel slighted, as according to numerous reports from Lynn Henning and others at the time he had a handshake deal with the Tigers for that $144 MM extension in spring training….which Scott Boras then used to shop around the league. He wasn’t slighted by the Tigers in any way, shape or form, he (via his agent) used the Tigers commitment to find more. And Scott Boras did that. Mr I (According to reports) felt used and betrayed, and made a point to not match the Nationals offer. I wish he had, as a fan, but I understand completely why he would send a message to Scott Boras that way. He’s the best pitcher on the planet, no doubt, but the underlying tones of his saying that make me cringe. You had a deal, Max, and you changed your mind. If anyone was betrayed it was the Tigers.
A very well stated post.
You do realize that other teams are NOT allowed to talk to other agents or players about contracts when they are under contract with a particular team. In this case the ONLY team Boras and Max could talk money too until after the season was Detroit…So if this story is true…1st the Tigers should have put pen to paper and get the extension done and 2nd Boras and other teams would have both been in trouble by MLB for contract talks on players that are still under contract with other teams.
Yeah, there’s no such thing as a handshake deal in that scenario. If they had a deal, there’s no rule that prevented them from signing it.
If that was the highest offer I’m sure they would’ve agreed to it, but Boras knew the market could bear Max more and he was correct.
How many times has Chris Archer left a game after causing Pirates’ Fans discomfort?
Almost every start
I think the Rays definitely got the better end of that deal!
For many most of the discomfort comes when he takes the mound in the first wondering which version we will see.
I hate the name archer. You know feeling Neil and bob need to sell the team. That was a horrible trade.
After his outing in Detroit the Nats have to strongly consider moving him. They need to fill up if they’re gonna compete in that division and they’re sinking fast. Call it year, trade Rendon and Scherser, and run it back next season. The haul they’d get just for Max would be incredible