Max Scherzer had been following the Diamondbacks' off-season plans closely, hoping his team would make improvements. "Obviously, things change, and that's how baseball is," he said. "You can be thinking one thing one minute, and then another opportunity comes around." Scherzer used the words "shocked" and "blindsided" in describing his emotions upon learning he had been traded to Detroit. "Definitely caught me by surprise," he said. "But for me I leave the Diamondbacks and go to another good opportunity where I'll have a chance to make the playoffs."