The Rangers have reached agreement on a trade with the Mets to acquire three-time Cy Young winner Max Scherzer, a source told MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand on Saturday. Scherzer would need to waive his full no-trade clause for the deal to be completed, and the teams have not confirmed the deal.
Feinsand reports there are still “a few items” that have to be worked out before Scherzer makes a decision on waiving his no-trade clause. The Mets’ return in the trade was not immediately known.
If the trade is completed, the Rangers would essentially be replacing one former Mets ace with another, as Jacob deGrom, the $185 million prize of Texas’ active offseason, underwent season-ending elbow surgery in June. Scherzer is in the final guaranteed year of a two-year, $86.67 million deal, though he has a player option for $43.3 million for 2024.
Scherzer had one of his best starts of the season on Friday night, holding the Nats to one run over seven innings with seven strikeouts, but the likely Hall of Famer has been uneven for most of the season, posting a 4.01 ERA with 121 strikeouts over 107 2/3 innings. He has been especially susceptible to the long ball, allowing a career-high 1.9 home runs per nine innings.
Scherzer made headlines after Friday’s game when he told reporters he wanted to “have a conversation with the front office” about the direction the Mets were taking following Thursday’s trade of closer David Robertson to the Marlins for a pair of prospects.
Texas entered Saturday in first place in the AL West, two games above the Astros, as the club attempts to reach the postseason for the first time since 2016, while the Mets sit at 49-54, 6 1/2 games out of the final NL Wild Card spot.
