Dodgers: Max Scherzer trade rumor could put LAD in driver’s seat

It’s unclear whether the Washington Nationals will be in sell mode come Friday, but Monday’s backbreaking walk-off loss to the Philadelphia Phillies put them nine games under .500 and 8.5 out of first place in the NL East.

It’s surely not impossible to mount a comeback over the next two months in such a weak division, but some might say the Nats are playing with house money at the moment, and it could be beneficial for the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Washington just won the World Series in 2019 and they have a ton of money coming off the books after this season.

What better way to re-tool and get back into contention as soon as 2022 by flipping some valuable pieces at the trade deadline?

There’s good news for all parties involved here, too.

Max Scherzer, who could emerge as the most valuable piece the Nats end up parting with, prefers a move to the West Coast if he’s dealt, according to MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand.

It remains to be seen if Max Scherzer will be traded, but a source said the pitcher “strongly prefers the West Coast” to waive his no-trade clause. Given the state of the NL West, he could be the difference-maker in that race if he landed with the Dodgers, Giants or Padres.
— Mark Feinsand (@Feinsand) July 27, 2021

The Dodgers could benefit in a big way from Max Scherzer’s reported trade demands.

Man, this would help avoid seeing Scherzer end up with the Houston Astros, wouldn’t it? Though, we’d have to say it’d be equally devastating if he was dealt to the Pads or Giants. Los Angeles can’t afford that with all the damage done to their starting rotation.

Though the Dodgers’ farm system isn’t ranked as high as it usually is (and San Diego and San Fran rank ahead of them, according to MLB.com), there’s no reason Andrew Friedman wouldn’t be able to out-bid his division rivals.

LA has two of the best prospect catchers in baseball (Keibert Ruiz and Diego Cartaya). Perhaps the bidding can begin there. There are also promising pitchers such as Michael Grove, Ryan Pepiot, Bobby Miller and Clayton Beeter. The Padres have sold a lot of their non-top prospects in various other deals while the Giants surely need to look ahead to 2022 and beyond with their aging roster.

Max Scherzer’s potential trade out of WAS comes with a unique financial situation.

The gaining team would owe him $0 this year, with $15M deferred to 2028. The Nats would still owe him $7.5M this September from his signing bonus.

His traded luxury tax salary would be $10M.
— Spotrac (@spotrac) July 27, 2021

The Dodgers have similar issues, as Clayton Kershaw, Kenley Jansen, Corey Seager and others will hit free agency after this season, so Friedman surely needs to be careful about who he’s trading in the event the team loses some marquee talent.

Then again, if LA is going for it all to capture back-to-back World Series titles, does it really matter? They print money, and even more will be flowing if they can do it all over again. Their scouting department isn’t going anywhere, either.

Maybe don’t be too cautious, actually, because it’ll be more detrimental if Scherzer ends up with the three aforementioned contenders given the Dodgers’ urgent needs at the moment.

Dodgers need to step in and prevent Astros from trading for Max Scherzer

The Houston Astros are reportedly interested in trading for Max Scherzer, and the Los Angeles Dodgers must do everything to stop it from happening.

The Dodgers could benefit in a big way from Max Scherzer’s reported trade demands.

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