Why Scherzer makes sense
By: Chad Raines
Upon
entering the 2014 offseason, the New York Yankees were looking at being one of
the heavy favorites to sign Max Scherzer, Jon Lester or James Shields. Shortly
after, Yankees GM Brian Cashman stated that they would not be pursuing any of
the “big 3” starting pitchers on the market.
As
far as Jon Lester and James Shields go, there is a slim to none chance either
of them winds up in Pinstripes. However, Scherzer poses an interesting decision
for the front office to make.
Signing
perennial All-Star and 2013 American League Cy Young award winner Max Scherzer
makes sense. There is no way around that. Here are quite a few reasons as to why the Yankees must pull this deal off.
1) Effort
Let’s be honest with ourselves, as Yankee fans, we
are a bit spoiled when it comes to winning. As a fan base, we demand our team
is playing in October year in and year out. The Bronx Bombers haven’t made the
postseason since the 2012 season and it is very important for the front office
to show the fans they are making strides toward getting back on top of
baseball.
2) Durability
Since the 2013 season, Scherzer has thrown 434 2/3
innings, ranking sixth among pitchers across that stretch. In addition to that,
he has thrown 29 2/3 innings in the postseason. So, he has postseason
experience pitching in big games. He hasn’t even had a DL stint since 2009. Durability
was the issue the Yankees faced regarding their pitching in 2014 and Scherzer
will help this immensely.
3) Strikeouts
Scherzer is a strike out machine. Since 2012, he has
averaged 10.5 K/9 tallying up 240 and 252 in the last two seasons respectively.
He also leads the majors in strikeouts over the past season with 723. To combine
with this, he only averages 2.5 BB/9 so he exhibits good control. Hitters swing
and missed on 11.9% of his pitches since 2012 which ranks fourth.
4) Ace
Scherzer is the type of pitching anyone would want
anchoring their staff. He has the physical demeanor of an ace standing at 6’3”
and weighing 230 pounds. Scherzer is one of the more durable pitchers in
baseball and can get a strikeout at any time. He’s only 30 years old which
leads me to believe he has quite a few more seasons of dominance left in him.
Now,
I understand that there are pros and cons to signing everyone. There’s no doubt
bringing Scherzer in is going to be expensive, as it will likely take upwards
of $125 million across more than 5 years or so. Despite the cost, Scherzer
would be worth it to the organization and to the fan base as he would bring
excitement to the Bronx in hopes of getting back to the postseason in 2015.
-@Chad_Rain
Comments
Post a Comment