By Thefamefile@gmail.com 
Introduction
Erica May-Scherzer is widely known as the wife of Major League Baseball pitcher Max Scherzer, but her own story extends far beyond her connection to professional baseball. She has a background in college softball, academic and research work, animal welfare, community service, and advocacy. Over the years, she has built a public identity through charitable work and her involvement with organizations supporting vulnerable people and animals. Her life has also involved moving between different cities as Max developed his long MLB career.
Erica has often used the opportunities created by her husband’s professional career to support causes that are important to her. Her work has included animal rescue, youth development, women’s empowerment, human trafficking awareness, and community programs connected to baseball. Polaris Project has described her as an advocate and ambassador whose community work developed from her earlier experiences with animal welfare and youth programs.
Erica May-Scherzer’s Early Life and Background
Erica May-Scherzer was born Erica May and is originally from Colorado. She grew up in a family that had a strong affection for animals, an interest that later became an important part of her charitable work. Her early experiences with animals helped shape the way she approached volunteer work after college.
Unlike many people who become known because of a famous spouse, Erica had her own interests and ambitions before Max Scherzer became an established MLB star. She attended the University of Missouri, where she became involved in collegiate athletics and played softball. Her athletic background gave her a natural connection to the sporting world that would later become such an important part of her family life.
Erica’s college years were especially important because they brought her into contact with Max. The two were students at the University of Missouri during the early 2000s, with Max playing baseball and Erica playing softball. Their shared experience as college athletes helped create the foundation for their relationship.
Her College Softball Career
Softball was an important part of Erica’s identity during her university years. She played as a pitcher, meaning that she understood the physical and mental demands of competitive sports firsthand. Her experience was different from Max’s baseball career, but there were obvious similarities between their lives as college athletes.
Some published profiles report that Erica’s competitive athletic career was affected by heart-related health issues. Because details about her medical history are limited in reliable public sources, it is better to focus on the documented fact that she eventually moved away from competitive athletics and developed other professional and charitable interests.
Her experience in sports remained valuable even after she stopped competing. She understood the importance of teamwork, discipline, preparation, and community, qualities that later appeared in her approach to nonprofit work and youth programs.
Her time as a softball player also gave her a personal understanding of the pressure that comes with an athlete’s schedule. That experience became particularly relevant after she and Max began building a life around professional baseball.
How Erica Met Max Scherzer
Erica and Max Scherzer met while they were both attending the University of Missouri. Max was a baseball player, while Erica was part of the university’s softball program. According to published profiles, the two began dating in 2004, during their college years.
Their relationship began before Max entered professional baseball. In 2006, Max was drafted by the Arizona Diamondbacks, marking the beginning of his professional MLB journey. Erica was therefore alongside him during the transition from college athletics to professional sports.
That transition involved major changes. Max’s career eventually took the couple to different baseball communities, while Erica had to consider how to maintain her own professional ambitions while supporting a spouse whose career required extensive travel.
In an interview with Polaris, Erica explained that finding work compatible with Max’s baseball schedule was one of the challenges she faced. She wanted to use her education and skills while also being able to travel and remain connected to her husband’s career.
Marriage to Max Scherzer
Erica and Max eventually married in November 2013. By that point, Max had already established himself as a major professional baseball pitcher, and the couple had spent years together through the early stages of his career.
Their marriage has developed alongside Max’s career with several MLB organizations. He began with Arizona before moving to the Detroit Tigers, Washington Nationals, Los Angeles Dodgers, New York Mets, Texas Rangers, and later Toronto. Erica’s life has consequently involved adapting to the changing locations and demands associated with professional baseball.
The couple’s public image is often connected to baseball, but their relationship has also been strongly associated with charitable activities. They have repeatedly used their public profile to bring attention to causes involving animals, children, community programs, and vulnerable people.
Erica May-Scherzer as a Mother
Erica and Max Scherzer have four children. Their family includes daughters Brooklyn, Kacey and Nikki, as well as their son Derek Alexander. Their children have grown up with professional baseball as a major part of family life.
Being the family of an MLB player can involve unusual schedules, frequent travel, and long periods of separation during the baseball season. Erica has managed much of that family life while remaining involved in charitable activities and supporting Max’s career.
The Scherzer children have also occasionally appeared in public family moments connected with baseball. Baseball has therefore become more than Max’s profession; it has become an important part of the family’s shared experiences.
At the same time, Erica has generally maintained a distinction between public charitable work and the more private aspects of family life. Much of the family’s everyday life remains outside the public spotlight.
Her Work in Animal Welfare
Animal welfare has been one of Erica’s most consistent charitable interests. In her interview with Polaris, she explained that she began fostering animals after college and became involved in adoption counseling, fundraising events, and adoption programs. Her interest became so strong that she joked about having difficulty not taking every animal home.
Erica and Max have also adopted rescue animals themselves. Their commitment to animal welfare became especially visible during their time in Washington, D.C., where they worked with the Humane Rescue Alliance.
In 2017, the couple agreed to cover adoption fees at Humane Rescue Alliance shelters following Hurricane Harvey. The goal was to encourage adoptions and create space for animals that could be displaced by the disaster. The Washington Post reported that the couple had already adopted four dogs from animal shelters and had supported the organization through both financial contributions and promotional work.
HumanePro has also described Erica as a board member of the Humane Rescue Alliance and highlighted the couple’s involvement in adoption-fee sponsorships and promotional campaigns.
Their animal welfare work demonstrates one of the clearest ways Erica has used her public platform. Rather than simply donating privately, she has helped bring public attention to shelter animals and adoption programs.
Human Trafficking Advocacy and Polaris Project
Another major part of Erica’s public work has been her involvement with Polaris, an organization focused on combating human trafficking. Polaris identified her as an ambassador and highlighted her work in advocacy, women’s empowerment, social justice, and human rights.
Her connection with the organization developed from earlier volunteer experiences. Erica had previously worked with animal welfare groups, youth organizations, women’s programs, and organizations addressing domestic violence. These experiences gradually brought her toward broader advocacy involving vulnerable populations.
During Max’s time with the Washington Nationals, the couple also supported a campaign called “Strike Out Modern Slavery.” The initiative connected Max’s baseball performance with fundraising for Polaris, helping bring attention to human trafficking through the sport.
Erica’s involvement with Polaris allowed her to use skills and experience beyond traditional charitable donations. She participated in awareness efforts and advocacy, showing how her public role could be connected to issues that extended beyond baseball.
Supporting Youth, Women and Community Programs
Erica’s charitable interests have never been limited to one cause. She has also been involved with youth education, sports programs, women’s empowerment, domestic violence organizations, and other community initiatives.
Her connection to baseball gave her opportunities to support programs that use sport as a way to reach young people. She has spoken about the value of youth baseball programs and the ability of sports to make a positive difference in children’s lives.
During her time in Detroit, Erica became involved with organizations supporting young people and later expanded her interests into women’s welfare and empowerment. Her work with organizations such as Alternatives For Girls and other community groups helped broaden her charitable focus.
She also supported initiatives connected to LGBTQ visibility. In 2015, while Max was with the Washington Nationals, Erica helped promote the team’s Night Out event for LGBT fans and encouraged other players’ spouses to participate. Her community work therefore covered a wide range of social and civic issues.
Life Behind the Baseball Spotlight
Although Erica is often introduced simply as Max Scherzer’s wife, her public record shows a broader life. Her background includes athletics, education, research, family responsibilities, nonprofit work, advocacy, and community involvement.
Her experience also reflects the unusual lifestyle of professional baseball families. Max’s career has required the family to live in different places and adapt to changing teams and schedules. Erica has repeatedly found ways to remain involved in meaningful work while moving between baseball communities.
Her charitable philosophy has been connected to the idea that athletes and their families have a responsibility to give back to the communities that support them. In her Polaris interview, she explained that much of Max’s success is connected indirectly to fans and communities, making community involvement an important value for their family.
This approach has allowed Erica to develop an identity independent of baseball statistics and game results. Her work with animals, children, women, and trafficking survivors has become an important part of how she is publicly known.
Erica May-Scherzer’s Life Today
Erica May-Scherzer’s public life continues to be closely connected with her family and charitable interests. While much of her everyday life remains private, her previous work provides a clear picture of the causes she has supported over the years.
Her story is particularly notable because her public role did not begin with a traditional celebrity career. She was a college athlete, pursued academic and research work, and gradually found a way to combine her skills with volunteer service and advocacy.
Her marriage to Max Scherzer brought her into the world of professional baseball, but it also provided opportunities to connect sports with community service. Through animal adoption campaigns, youth programs, human trafficking advocacy, and other charitable activities, she has repeatedly used that platform to support organizations and causes.
For people interested in Erica May-Scherzer, her biography is therefore about much more than her relationship with a famous baseball player. It is a story of a former college athlete who developed a life centered on family, service, advocacy, and community involvement.
Conclusion
Erica May-Scherzer has built a distinctive public identity through her family life, athletic background, charitable work, and advocacy. Her relationship with Max Scherzer began at the University of Missouri when both were college athletes, and they later married in 2013. Together they have raised four children while navigating the demanding lifestyle of professional baseball.
Beyond her role as a baseball player’s wife, Erica has been involved in animal welfare, youth programs, women’s empowerment, human trafficking awareness, and community initiatives. Her work with Polaris and the Humane Rescue Alliance represents two especially visible parts of her charitable history.
Erica May-Scherzer’s life shows how a person connected to professional sports can use that platform for purposes beyond the field. Her story combines athletics, family, education, advocacy, and philanthropy, making her a notable figure in her own right while remaining largely focused on the causes and people she supports.