Nationals make their pitch, reportedly land prized four-pitch pitcher Scherzer

Five years ago, pitcher Max Scherzer was a blue-chip prospect with an unpredictable delivery and even more unpredictable results.

He's on his way to Washington after agreeing to a seven-year contract reportedly worth in excess of $180 million, giving the Nationals an unbelievable rotation that includes Stephen Strasburg, Gio Gonzalez, Doug Fister, Tanner Roark and Jordan Zimmermann. Media reports speculate that Zimmermann or Fister could be traded for prospects as general manager Mike Rizzo tries to balance winning in 2015 with long-term stability.

When Scherzer was growing up in the Arizona Diamondbacks organization, the scouting report was simple: He could pile up strikeouts, but he could also hit 40 pitches an inning.

The Detroit Tigers acquired him after the 2009 season in a three-team trade that sent outfielder Curtis Granderson to the New York Yankees. The Tigers wanted young talent in their system and they were trying to shed payroll so that they could sign their ace pitcher, Justin Verlander.

The Tigers figured they could develop Scherzer and make him into a top-of-the-rotation pitcher. "Max had all the talent in the world, and we knew that he could be an excellent pitcher if we just gave him time,'' then-Tigers manager Jim Leyland said. "But there was no question he was raw.''

Scherzer was 12-11 with the Tigers in 2010. The next season, his ERA rose to 4.43. He was fortunate to be pitching behind the Tigers' high-scoring offense.

Also in 2011, Scherzer lost a key game for the Tigers against Texas in the American League Championship Series. The game was in Texas and the Tigers needed a victory to force a seventh game. It didn't happen. Scherzer lasted just 2 2/3 innings, walking four and giving up six runs.

It was Scherzer's first full season plus October. The Tigers thought that Scherzer was worn down from a long season and that he was getting crushed under the weight of postseason expectations.

Scherzer's turnaround started in the spring of 2012. When he reported to the Tigers' spring training camp in Lakeland, Fla., he started working on a curveball to add to his fastball, slider and changeup. He and Tigers pitching coach Jeff Jones also changed his mechanics.

The results weren't apparent right away. In his first eight starts of 2012, Scherzer had a 6.26 ERA.

Then the new approach kicked in.

He became a four-pitch pitcher with a delivery that was easy to repeat. His delivery wasn't as violent. There were fewer moving parts. And when he lost control of his pitches, he was able to readjust his mechanics and get them back in line.

The curveball developed into more than a show-me pitch. It became such a good pitch for Scherzer, that he was able to throw first-pitch strikes with it. The curveball was especially good versus left-handed batters.

His changeup made big improvements, as well, and became arguably his second-best pitch behind his fastball, which has late-breaking nastiness.

And his sliders were never fun.

Scherzer cut his ERA to 3.74 by the end of the season.

In 2013, Scherzer went 21-3 with a 2.90 ERA and 240 strikeouts in 214 1/3 innings. Last season, he had a 3.15 ERA and 18 wins.

Last offseason, the Tigers offered him a $144 million contract, and when he turned it down, it was obvious Tigers ownership knew his days in Detroit were numbered.

Safe to say the Tigers were not impressed.

Scherzer is now six months away from turning 31. The Nationals might have buyer's remorse with Scherzer down the road. But for now, Scherzer will be on mission to help Washington win a World Series for the first time since 1924.