The Detroit Tigers offered Max Scherzer a six-year, $144 million contract extension prior to the 2014 season. He declined the lucrative offer and opted to explore free agency, but as of right now he doesn't have any suitors because of his contract demands.
There are a number of clubs that could use Scherzer atop their starting rotation, including the New York Yankees, San Francisco Giants and Boston Red Sox, among others. However, the Yankees and Giants have made it known they have no plans of pursuing the right-hander while it's speculated the Red Sox will not spend such money after dishing out a number of large contracts to Rusney Castillo, Pablo Sandoval and Hanley Ramirez. The Los Angeles Dodgers, who were also speculated to make one last big move before spring training, also noted they likely won't be signing a player such as Scherzer.
So that leaves the Tigers. ESPN's Buster Olney speculates the two sides may reunite at some point since Scherzer's options aren't plentiful and the team has already been in contract talks with him. Detroit may not immediately need Scherzer for 2015, but they'll need him leading the rotation beyond this upcoming season. Justin Verlander's performance has been declining over the past two seasons (28-24 with a 3.99 ERA) and he has slowly fallen out of the discussion of elite pitchers; David Price is not guaranteed to stay with the team beyond 2015 since the two sides have not initiated long-term contract talks; Shane Greene has only 14 career starts under his belt; and Alfredo Simon will be a free agent after this season.
"What the Tigers have not said to date is that the door on a possible return for Scherzer is slammed shut. ... They know Scherzer; they know his work ethic; they understand firsthand what a great pitcher he is; and, there can be no debate about this: Their chances of winning the World Series, which has been their operational goal more acutely than for almost any other team in recent seasons, are better with the right-hander on the team," writes Olney.
Although the team's ownership was not pleased when Scherzer rejected their generous contract extension, Brian Manzullo of the Detroit Free Press thinks the Tigers could do what they did with Prince Fielder a few seasons ago: "Wait until late in free agency (January) and sign him to a big deal with the support of owner Mike Ilitch, who has had the team in 'win-now' mode for the past few years."
Well, it's January and the market for Scherzer is still largely undefined. Jason Beck of MLB.com notes Tigers' team president and general manager Dave Dombrowski said there were "no active negotiations" between the two, and assistant general manager Al Avila said Detroit "hadn't been in touch with Scherzer's representation." However, the decision likely isn't up to Dombrowski and Avila since Scherzer is seeking a $200 million contract. The right-hander's agent, Scott Boras, told Beck "this is an ownership decision."
As we get deeper into the offseason and closer to spring training, it's definitely possible a number of big market team owners opt to change their mind on Scherzer.
