Many of the highly wanted free agent pitchers have already signed elsewhere and have tried on their new jerseys for the first time within the last two months. Jon Lester signed with the Chicago Cubs, Jeff Samardzija was traded to the Chicago White Sox, Ervin Santana signed with the Minnesota Twins, and Francisco Liriano re-signed with the Pittsburgh Pirates.
The last two pitchers left in the free agent pool are James ‘Big Game’ Shields and Max Scherzer. Scherzer is the one pitcher that all the ball clubs are trying to get but he is asking for $200+ million dollars while Shields is asking for a contract in the area of $110 million. Many teams are starting to back away from Scherzer because of his asking price. Many teams prefer Shields because he will come a lot cheaper and has been one of the most consistent pitchers in baseball since his days with the Tampa Bay Rays.
Here are my predictions of where both players will sign and why.
James Shields
Boston Red Sox
Photo Credit: USAtoday.com
No one ever puts the Red Soxs out of signing a big name free agent. This offseason they have signed both Pablo Sandoval and Hanley Ramirez. Both players will contribute to this offense and will protect David Ortiz. Both players will also have plenty of opportunities to drive in runs with this solid lineup. Last season their offense wasn’t the problem it was their pitching rotation. Clay Buchholtz was the so called ‘ace’ of the team. They even went on and traded for Joe Kelly from the St. Louis Cardinals during the trade deadline but he had a handful of good starts. This offseason they have traded for Rick Porcello and Wade Miley, yes they don’t blow you away but they are very good pitchers that collect outs and keep the ball on the ground. Now all they need to do is sign James Shields to be the true ace of the staff and show the young guys how it is done. The Red Sox are missing a veteran piece like Shields. He is able to eat innings and collect outs in tough situations. He will give the bullpen a rest every time he steps on the mound and if his offense scatters 3 runs on the board for him then the game is pretty much in his control.
Red Sox sign Shields to a 4 year $90 million dollar contract
Max Scherzer
New York Yankees
Photo Credit: USAtoday.com
It’s simple, the Yankees need pitching and they need it bad. Behind Tanaka they really don’t have much. They plugged-and-played a lot of different pitchers throughout the season and had a hell of a run with Brandon McCarthy but for some reason they didn’t re-sign him even though he pitched really well for them. Max Scherzer has been one of the best pitchers in the MLB for the last three seasons and will look to make out big from that. He is definitely one of the best strikeout pitchers in the MLB and is very competitive on the mound. When he misses his location you can see his frustration. Scherzer also pitches deep into ball games but his pitch count can hurt him at times with all the punch outs he compiles. The Yankees need a solid #1 pitcher and they have that in Tanaka already but when you add Scherzer to the rotation, then you get one of the best 1-2 punches in the American League.
Yankees sign Scherzer to a 6 year $180 million dollar contract
Main Photo Credit: MLB.com
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