Baseball’s biggest offseason storyline will be where superstar Shohei Ohtani decides to go in free agency. Several teams will check in to gauge interest if not outright pursue the two-time American League MVP with every resource available. He could potentially get a $500 million contract on the open market.
The Dodgers are considered to be the favorite to win the Ohtani auction with the Red Sox and Rangers also reported as top contenders. However, only one of those three teams just won the World Series, which could be the strongest selling point.
Rangers pitcher Max Scherzer was a guest on the daily digital show Foul Territory on Monday and was asked to give his recruiting pitch for Ohtani to sign with Texas. Scherzer can’t comment on Ohtani directly without violating Major League Baseball’s tampering rules. But he did make a succinct, compelling argument for joining the Rangers.
“Money’s great, but winning’s better,” Scherzer told co-host Todd Frazier.
"Money's great, but winning's better."
Max Scherzer shares his pitch for Shohei Ohtani to join the @Rangers 🏆
▶️ https://t.co/6KoSRqSgk2 pic.twitter.com/PHW2jHWj6C
— Foul Territory (@FoulTerritoryTV) November 20, 2023
“You wanna come win, that’s better than money, I promise,” Scherzer added.
The 16-year veteran will draw a $43.3 million salary for 2024, so maybe that’s easy for him to say. Scherzer is getting paid big money and he won a championship. The Dodgers and Red Sox have both won World Series titles during the past six seasons.
Rob Schumacher/The Republic/USA TODAY Network, Brad Penner/USA TODAY Sports
However, the Rangers are the most recent champion with a young core of talent supplemented by high-priced stars that ownership paid for willingly. And that club is led by a manager who has won four World Series championships. As Frazier also pointed out, no state income tax in the state of Texas is another nice benefit.
Scherzer doesn’t have to say much more than he did. The Rangers sell themselves and they have a DH spot waiting for Ohtani in their lineup. That might be a better fit than any other team can offer.
