Nationals’ Scherzer reunion pushed back after MLB cancels first two series

The Washington Nationals were scheduled to kick off the season in New York in a reunion against former star pitcher Max Scherzer, but that will now have to wait at least one more week.

Key word: Now. 

In a situation that could certainly change if Major League Baseball and the players’ union can’t find a new collective bargaining agreement soon, the Nationals’ first two series of the season — a three-game tilt versus the Mets in New York and a two-gamer against the Phillies in Washington, D.C. — have been canceled. The decision to cancel each teams’ first two series was made Tuesday afternoon by Commissioner Rob Manfred after the league and the players’ union missed the MLB’s 5 p.m. deadline.

It’s unclear as of Tuesday evening what the season-opening schedule will look like for the Nationals, or how division opponents will play each other 19 times apiece in a shortened season. However, if the first two series are just wiped out and the April schedule is unaltered, the Nationals would open the 2022 campaign at home on Thursday, April 7, against the Mets instead of on the road — previously scheduled as Washington’s third series of the season.

While any loss of games is a negative for the game of baseball, the league, the players and the fans, Washington faithful could get a treat if the home series versus the Mets does indeed open the season.

Instead of having to watch the team face off against Scherzer in his new blue and orange uniform on television, Washington fans could see “Mad Max” back on the mound at Nationals Park in either the first or second game of the season. If the Mets decide to start ace Jacob deGrom on Opening Day, that would leave Scherzer, who signed a three-year, $130-million contract with the with New York before the lockout began, to take the bump on Friday, April 8 — assuming no changes to the schedule are made. 

The league had submitted a “final” offer Tuesday afternoon, but the players’ union unanimously rejected it ahead of MLB’s 5 p.m. deadline. Canceling the March 31 Opening Day was a threat the league had regularly made during negotiations, and Manfred took that expected step during his statements Tuesday. 

“The calendar dictates that we’re not going to be able to play the first two series of the regular season and those games are officially canceled,” Manfred said.

The cancellation of the first two series — and possibly more — marks the third straight season that Washington’s Opening Day has been impacted. In 2020, the beginning of the season was canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic, and last season, Opening Day was postponed due to a COVID-19 outbreak after spring training.