Mets Trade Max Scherzer to Texas Rangers for Top Prospect
The Texas Rangers are going for it this season after giving up a top prospect to facilitate a trade for Max Scherzer from the New York Mets.
The deal, made official Sunday, is further proof the Rangers are serious about making a postseason and winning the first World Series in franchise history.
To get Scherzer, who had a full no-trade clause and had to approve the deal, the Mets will get Double-A infielder Luisangel Acuña, the brother of Atlanta Braves star Ronald Acuña Jr.
This is the second time the Rangers have acquired a top Mets pitcher in the last year. In December, the Rangers signed Jacob deGrom to a five-year contract. He, unfortunately, needed Tommy John surgery in June to repair a torn UCL in his right elbow, a recovery that will bleed into the 2025 season.
The latest blockbuster deal was held up momentarily because there was some question about whether Scherzer would convert the final year of his deal into a non-player option.
Scherzer signed a three-year, $130 million deal before the 2022 season. He is in the second year of that deal, and the 2024 season is a player option. Scherzer has exercised that option and will be the Rangers in 2024. The Rangers will play Scherzer $22.5 million, with the Mets on the hook for $35-plus million, per ESPN.
In Scherzer, the Rangers are getting a battle-tested veteran pitcher who can help them now. But the 38-year-old right-hander also comes with strings attached.
Scherzer has a World Series ring with the Washington Nationals. He’s won three Cy Young Awards and been to eight All-Star games. This season he is 9-4 with a 4.01 ERA. He has also had side and back issues this season, and had oblique issues last season.
In the postseason — which is what matters to the Rangers right now — Scherzer is 7-7 with a 3.58 ERA in 27 games (22 starts). He has 164 strikeouts against 51 walks.
You can find Matthew Postins on Twitter @PostinsPostcard.
Catch up with Inside the Rangers on Facebook, Twitter, TikTok and Instagram.
