Former NY Mets player is a rumored Blue Jays' backup plan after Roki Saski tease

You have to feel some sense of sympathy for the Toronto Blue Jays. Teased countless times, maybe only the San Francisco Giants have had a worse experience in free agency in recent years as coming up as the runner-up more often than not. In the wake of seeing Roki Sasaki go to the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Blue Jays have set their sights on signing a very noteworthy former New York Mets player.

While Pete Alonso remains a possibility for them, Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet reports the team has interest in Max Scherzer. Justin Verlander already went to those regular free agent runner-ups out in San Francisco. It would only make sense for Scherzer to end up pitching for the Blue Jays next season.

The Blue Jays can’t lose this bidding war too, can they?

Scherzer remains fresh in the minds of Mets fans. What he represented to the changing of the guard in Flushing can’t be ignored. After a 2021 disappointment under the first year leadership of owner Steve Cohen, the team needed to accomplish something big. The Francisco Lindor trade and subsequent extension showed the league Cohen was for real. By snagging Scherzer in free agency, notably away from the Dodgers where he finished the 2021 season, it suggested that the new sheriff in New York was ready to go to whatever lengths he had to in order to acquire the best available free agents.

Of course, things didn’t quite go as planned. The Mets made the 2022 postseason with Scherzer as a big part of it albeit in only 23 starts. He faded late in the season and a poor start in the playoffs against the San Diego Padres soured many on what he could offer moving forward. Teamed up with Verlander the following year, the 2023 Mets were one of the biggest letdowns imaginable.

Scherzer spent last season with the Texas Rangers making only 9 starts and pitching to a 3.95 ERA. Adding him to the Blue Jays roster might sell some newspapers (or whatever the 2025 equivalent would be). It hardly seems like it would make up for all of the losing they’ve done this offseason.

Signing with Toronto would reunite Scherzer with Chris Bassitt who is in the final year of his deal he signed with the Blue Jays after one season he spent with the Mets. The 2022 Mets rotation which also featured Jacob deGrom for half a season, the final waltz of a good year out of Carlos Carrasco, and a year out of Taijuan Walker that tricked the Philadelphia Phillies into a bad investment was often praised for how they learned from each other. In particular, Bassitt and Scherzer picked each other’s brains often.

Not many rumors have named Scherzer as a target this offseason. We can understand why. A down year and an injured one plus a nearing retirement tour would have most teams looking elsewhere. Not the Blue Jays, apparently.