Team effort produced Nats ace’s Virginia showcase
“It has direct river access and a 180-degree view of the water,” Cooke told Home & Design magazine, which featured the house in a 2019 issue. “We felt it was ideal for what the homeowners wanted to build.”
Scherzer — a three-time Cy Young Award winner who was part of the Nationals’ 2019 World Series-winning team — and his wife wanted a home that would be not only kid-friendly but also pet-friendly. In addition to their two daughters — Brooklyn and Kacey — they have four dogs and two cats.
Distinguished homes for sale in the D.C. region
The three-story house, which was completed in 2017, was built on the foundation of the previous home. It is perched high on a slope that unfurls toward the river. Thomson and Cooke teamed with interior designer Martha Vicas and builders Ted Peterson and George Collins to create a modern, light-saturated house filled with warm wood, rough stone and sleek glass.
The exterior of the house is clad in Carderock stone and mahogany siding. A wall of glass at the back of the house provides abundant natural light and exceptional views of the riverscape.
At the front of the house, a willowy, patinaed-bronze sculpture by British artist David Harber greets visitors. Next to it, a laser-cut bronze entry gate opens to a vestibule. Inside the vestibule, a glass door leads into the home. A floating staircase of steel and glass curves around a chandelier of porcelain lights that cascades from the top floor to the lower level.
The most spectacular space is the great room, or “River Room” as the architects call it. The two-story living area has floor-to-ceiling glass that overlooks the river. A basalt fireplace anchors the room. Glass doors open to an expansive deck.
“One of our goals was to capture the scale and view of the landscape while creating intimate spaces for everyday living,” Cooke told Home & Design. “For example, the dining room is cozier than the River Room, as are the sheltering bedrooms upstairs. This includes the master, which connects to a private, glass-railed balcony.”
One wall of the dining room is taken up by glass-enclosed wine storage. Calacatta Gold marble adorns the island, countertops and backsplash in the kitchen. The large mudroom comes with a dog-washing station. The master suite has a coffee bar and his-and-her dressing rooms.
The wet bar on the lower level has a backsplash made of travertine tile from Ann Sacks. A “living” wall, with plants on both sides, and a drop ceiling with color-controlled LED lights create visual interest. Glass doors open to a heated saltwater infinity pool. The three-car garage has charging stations.
Throughout the home, large spaces for entertaining are balanced with cozy family-gathering spots.
“The house needed to live large for the homeowners’ social and philanthropic needs and small for their family life,” Vicas told Home & Design.
Building the house was only part of the transformation of the property. The Scherzers worked with landscape architect Joseph Richardson to revitalize the grounds.
“The primary goal was to leave the site in a better condition than when it was found,” Richardson wrote in a description of the project. “Critical elements of the overall master plan included stabilizing eroded creeks and slopes, restoring wetlands at the river’s edge and incorporating a massive rain garden to filter stormwater flows from the home’s parking court above and also from several properties further up the hill.”
Richardson and his crew spent two weeks removing by hand every nonnative plant in the wetland area. They reseeded the meadow with wildflowers and grazing plants to attract wildlife. The ferns and dogwoods in the rain garden filter the water before it flows into the creeks and the river.
“Another important objective was to provide adequate space for exercise, both for the owner — a professional athlete — and his family’s four dogs,” Richardson wrote. “We spaced the lawn steps to correspond with the owner’s long striding gate so he doesn’t have to go to a stadium to ‘run the bleachers.’ ”
The five-bedroom, seven-bathroom, 8,300-square-foot house, on three acres, is listed at $15 million.