The 5 best Mets trade candidates and where they could end up

4) Best NY Mets trade candidate: Max Scherzer

Maybe MLB’s biggest “will they or won’t they” trade piece this summer, Max Scherzer has to be somewhere on this list even if the front office insists he’s not going anywhere and the chances of it are so slim. Nonetheless, the speculation is real and underwhelming as he has been, Scherzer can help out a lot of ball clubs.

Now 8-3 with a 4.31 ERA on the season, Scherzer has the kind of numbers you’d expect from a number four or five starter on an average team. Mad Max hasn’t finished a season with an ERA over 4.00 since 2011. In fact, if we exclude the 2020 season, he hasn’t even been over 3.00 since 2014.

Trading Scherzer will have its roadblocks due to his salary and the player option for next year. The Mets would have to absorb some of the money. Because of this, they’re probably actually better keeping him than getting a minimal return.

Only a small number of teams “can afford” to add Scherzer to their payroll. Although the Los Angeles Dodgers immediately come to mind, their NL West rival Arizona Diamondbacks are the team that should go all-in to get him.

Arizona is right there among the best in the league. They’re doing it without a complete rotation. Behind Zac Gallen and currently injured Merrill Kelly, there isn’t a whole lot in the rotation. The bullpen has been fantastic and the offense can hold their own.

Scherzer was originally drafted by the Diamondbacks and a reunion with them could push them ahead. It’s really only a matter of the front office having willingness to take on a part of his massive salary and accept what he could bring to the table next year. They’re already paying Madison Bumgarner to disappear. Could they be willing to do the same for Scherzer if things go south?