MLB Rumors: Angels Were Closer Than Dodgers For Max Scherzer, But Neither Were Close To Mets

Ron Gutterman
Ron Gutterman
3 Min Read
Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/ SCNG

The Los Angeles Angels had their name in the mix for nearly every top starting pitcher on the free agent market. However, in an all-too familiar routine, the Halos struck out on all of them, including former L.A. Dodgers ace and current New York Mets starter Max Scherzer.

For most of free agency prior to the lockout, it appeared as though Scherzer would be picking between the Angels and Dodgers. However, the Mets made an aggressive late push and ultimately signed him to a whopping three-year, $130 million deal.

Reportedly, the Angels were actually in a better position to land Scherzer than the Dodgers, although specific offers have not yet been revealed publicly, according to Mike DiGiovanna of The L.A. Times:

Even though the Angels likely ranked second to the Mets, it was confirmed by a second source that the Angels were never close to the $130 million figure that Scherzer got, according to Jack Harris of The L.A. Times:

Max Scherzer signed a record-breaking three-year, $130-million contract with the New York Mets that, according to a person with knowledge of the situation, the Angels didn’t come close to matching.

While there is an argument to be made that the Angels failed their offseason goals by not acquiring any of the top free agents on the market, they simply cannot be faulted for not giving Scherzer $130 million.

While Scherzer is undoubtedly one of the best pitchers on the planet, he’s also entering his age-38 season and coming off of a playoffs in which he had to miss scheduled starts due to fatigue. The Angels could not take the risk of breaking the AAV record on Scherzer when they still have other areas of need.

Signing Scherzer likely means no Raisel Iglesias. It also means no trades for any starters either. It would essentially be Scherzer, Noah Syndergaard, Aaron Loup, and then the exact same staff as last year. Without Scherzer, the team has greater flexibility to make moves after the lockout.

Perry Minasian stresses that offseason is not over

While absolutely nothing is happening right now due to the lockout, Minasian made it clear in the final hours of normalcy that the Angels were not done in their pursuit of pitching. He didn’t give too many specifics in terms of a plan, but he assured that more pitching could be expected.

Ron Gutterman is a college student from Anaheim, California, and is currently the lead editor for AngelsNation.com. He is also a Staff Writer for LakersNation.com, RamsNewsWire.com, and RaidersNewsWire.com. He is a student attending Washington State University in Pullman, Washington, studying Sports Management. With Lakers Nation, Rams News Wire, Raiders News Wire, and Angels Nation, Ron assists in news, game coverage, analysis, and hot takes via his Twitter account, @rongutterman24. Ron's favorite Angels player of all time is either Mike Trout or Vladimir Guerrero. Ron began watching baseball when he was seven years old with his dad taking him to games. Ron's all time favorite Angels moment is when he was at Angels Stadium to watch the Halos throw a no-hitter in the first home game after the death of Tyler Skaggs. Contact: ron@mediumlargela.com