Should Washington Nationals Have Re-Signed Franchise Great To End Storied Career?

Many Nationals fans are raising the question after the future Hall of Famer signed elsewhere in the offseason.

Mar 2, 2025; Dunedin, Florida, USA; Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Max Scherzer (31) throws a pitch against the Philadelphia Phillies in the first inning during spring training at TD Ballpark. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

The Washington Nationals are still firmly in the middle of a rebuild that began shortly after their 2019 World Series win, and while there is certainly light at the end of the tunnel, they enter the 2025 season with questions in the rotation.

The top of the rotation has been solidified with former top prospects Mackenzie Gore and Jake Irvin, but the back end is where concern arises. As things currently stand, the Nationals look like they'll be relying on a mixture of unproven, and injury prone newcomers.

There are still a few solid free agent options that could be added before the season starts at least to serve as innings eaters, but many have begun to question why the team didn't do more to aquire a franchise legend in the offseason.

Max Scherzer, who served as Washington's ace from 2015 through 2021, was a free agent this past offseason entering what's certain to be the last few years of his illustrious career.

Scherzer headlined the National's rotation for more than half a decade, and was arguably the best pitcher in baseball over that stretch.

During his stint in Washington, he won two Cy Young awards, finished top three in voting three more times, and led the team to it's first and only World Series in franchise history.

Thank you, Max. For everything.

• 189 starts
• 1,610 strikeouts
• 76 10-K games
• 6 All-Star selections
• 2 Cy Young Awards
• 1 20-K game
• 1 World Series ring
• A lifetime of memories

(See you in Cooperstown.)@Max_Scherzer // #NATITUDE pic.twitter.com/r1gzkmt0jm

— Washington Nationals (@Nationals) July 30, 2021

The Nationals shipped the franchise future Hall of Famer off to the Los Angeles Dodgers at the 2021 trade deadline, and since then he's gone on to win another World Series ring in 2023, this time as part of the Texas Rangers.

When Scherzer became a free agent this past offseason, it seemed like a no-brainer for Washington to bring him back on a team friendly deal. Nobody was expecting the now 40-year-old to be close to his prime, but for a young team trying to take that next step having a living legend in the club house could do wonders.

The Nationals front office saw things differently however, and Scherzer would wind up signing a one year $15.5 million deal with the Toronto Blue Jays.

Now, with the season only a couple of weeks away, people are turning back to the question of whether or not the team should have done more to bring the former legend home.

There's no question that Scherzer is a shell of his former self, and that as of late the injuries have been piling up. He missed most of last season dealing with a number of ailments, and the few starts he did make were lackluster at best,

On the other hand though, there's no denying the benefit bringing on a proven winner like Scherzer to mentor a young team would have. We're already seeing what this looks like with Justin Verlander in San Francisco, and how he's already begun to mentor the young Giants' pitchers.

The bottom line here is that the Nationals, while trending in the right direction, are still a ways away from being true contenders. With this being the case, it would seem most beneficial to have arguably the team's greatest player ever in the dugout.

It also would have been a great service to both the fans, and Scherzer himself to end his illustrious career where he had the most success. As of now though, it remains another case of "What If?"