Welcome to New York, Max Scherzer.
The former Dodgers ace agreed to a three-year, $130 million deal with the Mets in November 2021, according to The Post’s Joel Sherman. The contract comes with a record $43.3 million average annual salary.
Hours before Scherzer and the Mets made it official, however, the 37-year-old pitcher was celebrating daughter Brooke’s 4th birthday with his wife, Erica May-Scherzer.
“We may have dropped the ball a bit and only gotten one pic today, but it’s been a bit busy,” Erica quipped Sunday on Instagram.
With Scherzer and his family now officially heading to the East Coast, here’s what you need to know about his favorite teammate.
Scherzer and Erica have a shared talent
Scherzer isn’t the only athlete in the family. In fact, while attending the University of Missouri — which is where she met her then-future husband — Erica was a pitcher on the softball team. She had to cut her career short, however, due to a heart condition, according to The Washington Post.
The couple began dating in 2005, a year before he was drafted by the Diamondbacks. They later tied the knot in 2013, when Scherzer was playing for the Tigers.
The couple is passionate about volunteer work
Avid animal lovers, Scherzer and Erica have worked with the Humane Rescue Alliance, previously known as the Washington Humane Society.
In a September 2020 interview with Washington Family, Erica — who has also worked on behalf of human trafficking victims — discussed how the partnership came about.
“One of their employees ran into me at a baseball game and knew that I had a passion for animal welfare. He talked to me in the stands and asked me if I’d be interested,” Erica said at the time when Scherzer pitched for the Nationals.
“A few days later, [Max and I] went down and met with the CEO, Lisa LaFontaine. We just clicked from the start. We loved their mission, their vision and got heavily involved. I ended up joining the board a while after. That organization … has been probably our favorite partnership to date,” she continued.
Erica regularly posts photos of her family’s recuse pets on her Instagram.
Erica gave birth to their third child on a career-day for Scherzer
In November 2020, Scherzer and Erica announced that they would be expecting their third child together, a baby boy. The couple, already proud parents to daughters Brooke, then 2, and Kacey, 1, revealed on Instagram that their son was due in the spring of 2021.
Fast-forward to May 2021 when Scherzer threw a complete game against the Marlins before meeting Erica at the hospital, where she would welcome son Derek.
“It was pretty crazy,” Scherzer said at the time, according to MLB.com. “I kind of like it that way. Erica did, too. She likes it like that. She didn’t mind going to the hospital while everything was going on. It was even better to come back with a win.”
Scherzer struck out nine batters in the May 2 win over the Marlins, and allowed five hits and one run.
