Coming off a 96-win season and a disappointing National League Division Series exit, it had been a rather quiet winter for the Washington Nationals, with the team stopping only to snag a couple prospects in the Wil Myers trade.
That changed this weekend, as the Nationals have reportedly landed the biggest fish in the free-agent sea, right-handed pitcher Max Scherzer, the 2013 American League Cy Young winner.
To land a top free agent, you need better bait than a worm or a shiny piece of aluminum foil. Only a few players of Scherzer's caliber hit the open market every season -- sometimes no players of that caliber hit the market -- so the best way to bring in that star is to write a gigantic check. And then add a few zeroes. Scherzer's seven-year deal with Washington is reported to be worth $210 million -- the present-day value is $185 million -- making it the richest deal in Nats history and the second-largest deal ever given to a pitcher, behind Clayton Kershaw's $215 million contract.
The obvious question is whether Scherzer is worth the money.
Raising $210 million isn't easy, but this particular answer is easy: Yes.