Max Scherzer Extended Qualifying Offer By Detroit Tigers
By Hayden Kane
Max Scherzer will be the biggest target in MLB free agency this winter. With that in mind, the Detroit Tigers extended him a $15.3 million qualifying offer this week.
The 2014 MLB free agent market is said to be “saturated” with starting pitching. Max Scherzer, Jon Lester, and James Shields top the list of available starting pitchers who could all land big, multi-year contracts.
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Even still, Scherzer looms as a guy who resonates as a true ace. Like Lester, he is enough better than the majority of his colleagues that he will be a target for a number of teams that will feel justified in handing out big dollars to fortify the top of their starting rotation.
In 2014, Scherzer went 18-5 with a 3.31 ERA in 33 starts. He struck out 10.3 per nine innings and wasn’t far off the pace that earned him a Cy Young award in 2013. He certainly enjoyed the kind of contract year that will get him paid.
The team announced that they extended qualifying offers to both Scherzer and designated hitter Victor Martinez.
The #Tigers extended one-year qualifying offers to RHP @Max_Scherzer and DH Victor Martinez.
— Detroit Tigers (@tigers) October 31, 2014
Scherzer will receive a deal north of $100 million in all likelihood, with the remaining starting pitchers on the market waiting for him to sign and set the market for what they can earn after he signs.
The Tigers will at least discuss a deal with Scherzer, between considering the disconnect between those two parties in negotiations before the season, it is not hard to envision Scherzer signing elsewhere.
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