As sometimes happens when a team gives up the championship cause, the story is in the other dugout.
This weekend at Citi Field, it was all about the great Shohei Ohtani and what might be. (And if you read Friday’s column, you already know the Mets have precisely 18-1 odds to lure Ohtani to Queens.)
On Monday, it was about future Hall of Famer Max Scherzer and what might have been.
It surely was a little sad to see the great right-hander in a Rangers uniform, but we have to admit now it was the right call for all parties that the Mets traded him for top shortstop/center field prospect Luisangel Acuna, and also that Scherzer, who had a full veto rights, approved the deal.
Scherzer on Monday said he “loved” his time in New York, loved Buck Showalter, his teammates and his new city (and certainly appreciated the convenience of having spring training in Port St. Lucie, only a 45-minute drive from his family and his home in Jupiter, Fla.) But ultimately, Scherzer is a ballplayer’s ballplayer. He was comfortable, but he’s a competitor.
“It was tough,” Scherzer said of the decision to accept the trade. “I honestly appreciate [GM Billy Eppler’s and owner Steve Cohen’s] honesty. Especially where I am in my career … I don’t have time to wait around.”
Scherzer understood the Mets were giving up on 2023 the moment David Robertson was sent packing, but needed to hear the intentions about 2024 since his contract runs through next year. He suggested if he was persuaded after talking to Eppler and Cohen that they planned to dive back in big for 2024, he’d consider wanting to “pump the brakes” on a trade, but it apparently looked to him that 2025 was a more reasonable World Series target date considering their pitch (plus the trades, the roster and logic). Even if the Mets sign a couple big free-agent pitchers — and we know they can do it — they probably aren’t a favorite in 2024.
It was probably an even tougher call for Cohen, but he made the adult decision to cut his losses (and even his tax bill to under $100 million — it’s $99 million now).
“It was a decision Steve had to make,” Scherzer said.
We agree. And while we believe Mets people that they intend to be “competitive” in 2024, that obviously wasn’t — and shouldn’t — be enough to convince Scherzer to force his way into staying in orange and blue.
As it worked out, Mets people surprisingly fielded similar interest in Scherzer and rotation mate Justin Verlander, even though Verlander was putting up better numbers here (they’ve both been great since leaving; Scherzer has a 166 ERA+ in Texas), and the best offer to the Mets came from the Rangers. The Dodgers and others were in, but Texas had a lot to offer him, too — a great roster, a big chance and a veteran manager, three-time champion Bruce Bochy, which the Mets understood was important to Scherzer. He also mentioned it wasn’t all the way across the country from Florida, and maybe he doesn’t care about this by now, but he’ll save enough loot in taxes to fill two big Texas boots.
From here the one negative is he’ll spring in Surprise, Ariz. Which makes St. Lucie seem like Paris. (Scherzer started his career in Arizona, and again, that’s just me talking.)
“I thought Texas was the best fit for me,” Scherzer said, flat-out.
Indeed, the move is working for all involved. Acuna is the Mets’ best prospect and the Mets are finally ranked in the top half of prospect lists. And Scherzer, despite Texas’ inexplicable recent eight-game losing streak, has an excellent chance to go to the World Series.
And that’s really what Scherzer cares about. He’s a family man with many small kids and dogs, but he checks the clock and assesses his chances. That’ why he went to the Dodgers in 2021, and why he’s in Texas now.
Nobody envisioned this scenario to start the season. Scherzer said the Mets thought, like the rest of us, they were a World Series contender. And even halfway through, when they were looking up at .500, they hoped they’d be able to get it together and play like they were supposed to.
There are only theories what went wrong, but Scherzer laughed off the idea the clubhouse was bad, and disagreed with the proposition set forth he and Verlander didn’t get along.
“Ver and I were much better off than we’ve ever been,” Scherzer said.
There’s no evidence of any major issue, and when they weren’t on good terms back in Detroit, those teams won a lot. So that theory seems weak.
They are different. Verlander at this stage is a celebrity, Scherzer remains just a ballplayer. Someone unnamed called Verlander a “diva” in this paper. But to be fair, he was personable and accommodating, and no more a diva than most great pitchers on their way to the Hall. Scherzer is the exception. He’s just a regular guy.
As for the real reason the Mets failed this year, Scherzer said, “That’s the billion-dollar question.”
Technically, it was only a half a billion spent.