Report: Rangers acquire Max Scherzer from Mets in blockbuster deal

Just one day after Max Scherzer expressed a desire to “have a conversation” with the New York Mets’ front office about the team’s direction for next season, that conversation appears to have led the star righty right out of town. In the biggest shock of deadline season so far — and after an hours-long saga that had more twists and turns than an episode of General Hospital — New York has reportedly agreed to send the future Hall of Famer to the pitching-needy Texas Rangers.

In return, Texas is sending 21-year-old infielder Luisangel Acuna — MLB Pipeline’s No. 44 overall prospect and, yes, Ronald’s little brother — to New York.

Even given the Mets’ trade of David Robertson earlier this week — an implicit admission that the team would be sellers, not buyers, at the trade deadline, and the move that prompted Scherzer’s quotes to the media on Friday — this is a stunner, seemingly coming out of nowhere late Saturday afternoon and taking several hours to actually get done.

First, news broke that the two teams had agreed to a deal and were waiting on Scherzer to waive his no-trade clause and give his approval. Then reports suggested that Scherzer would indeed play ball, but there was a hold-up over the financial details and who would pay what from Scherzer’s contract. The righty is in the final guaranteed year of a two-year, $86.67 million deal, with a player option for $43.3 million for 2024.) Then Mark Feinsand reported that, actually, Scherzer had yet to wave the no-trade clause, as the Rangers wanted to guarantee next year’s player option but Scherzer wanted to retain flexibility. In the end, though, the two sides were able to work it out: Texas will pay $22.5 million of the remaining money on Scherzer’s deal, with the righty opting to his option for 2024.

Either way, Scherzer’s willingness to agree to a trade means he apparently heard enough about the direction New York was headed — or found enough to like about the AL West-leading Rangers — to convince him to sign off. After a sensational debut in Queens last year, the righty has been just one of many underachieving stars for the Mets in 2023, pitching to a 4.01 ERA across 19 starts — and raising questions about where he fit in the team’s plans as they look to retool this winter.

New York is still on the fringes of the NL Wild Card race, six back in the loss column of the Cincinnati Reds, Miami Marlins and San Francisco Giants, but the most expensive team in baseball history seems ready to declare the 2023 season a failure. The 39-year-old Scherzer still has something left in the tank — his strikeout rate remains very strong, and he’s been bitten by some bad home-run luck that’s inflated his numbers — but with a shoulder injury that’s bothered him all year and a hefty $43.3 million player option for 2024, the Mets apparently concluded that getting younger and more flexible puts them in a better position moving forward. The question now becomes: Who’s next? Will Justin Verlander, himself at the tail end of his career and carrying a hefty price tag for next season, follow Scherzer out the door? How much stomach does Steve Cohen have for a rebuild, and how will Billy Eppler and Co. juggle competing next season with stocking up on young talent?

The Rangers, though, had plenty of reason to look past Scherzer’s question marks. After spending gobs of money over the past two offseasons on Corey Seager, Marcus Semien, Jacob deGrom, Nathan Eovaldi and others, Texas has put itself right in the thick of the AL pennant race, two games up on the Houston Astros in the AL West. But with deGrom out for the year, Eovaldi battling arm fatigue and real question marks around Dane Dunning, Andrew Heaney and Martin Perez come October, rotation depth was the team’s biggest need ahead of the trade deadline.

Scherzer — even this version of him — was the best arm available, a clear tier above the likes of Jordan Montgomery and Eduardo Rodriguez given his experience pitching on the biggest stages in the sport. (Over 133.1 postseason innings, Scherzer has posted a 3.58 ERA with 164 strikeouts.) He’s also coming off one of his best starts of the season, spinning seven innings of one-run ball in a win over the Washington Nationals on Friday night.

Luisangel Acuna scouting report

As for Acuna, the 21-year-old is thriving in a second go-round at Double-A this season — with a .315/.377/.453 slash line, seven homers and a whopping 42 steals through 84 games. At 5’9, Luisangel doesn’t pack the same pop as his older brother, but the swing is similarly violent and engineered to do maximum damage.

Combine that ability with a decent approach, and you’ve got a 15-20 homer, .260ish bat with plus-plus speed and the ability to stick at shortstop or second base.