The New York Mets were engaged with the Los Angeles Dodgers on trade talks involving both Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander, but both players ended up in the Lone Star State.
The New York Mets were busy at the trade deadline. Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander were split up and sent packing. Scherzer went to the Texas Rangers, Verlander to the Houston Astros. Now the two will operate in direct opposition to one another in the heated AL West playoffs race.
For the Mets, it was time to admit defeat. The most expensive payroll in baseball was not yielding the expected return. Scherzer and Verlander are 38 and 40 years old, respectively. If the Mets were going to pivot to a long-term plan, it only made sense to get whatever value possible for their aging aces.
The Rangers and the Astros weren't the only teams who came knocking, however. The Mets were furnished with several offers to consider — including two from the Los Angeles Dodgers, who made a push for both Scherzer and Verlander, but were denied on both fronts.
Why New York Mets turned down Los Angeles Dodgers in Max Scherzer, Justin Verlander trades
Jon Heyman of the New York Post laid out the Dodgers' reported interest and why neither deal went through.
On the Scherzer front, it was a simple matter of preference for Billy Eppler and the New York front office. The Dodgers offered a prospect package considered to be similar in value to the Rangers' offer of SS/CF prospect Luisangel Acuña, but the Mets preferred one elite prospect over a collection of lesser talents.
For Verlander, the Dodgers were a victim of circumstance. Verlander spent five years with Houston and won two championships. Naturally, his familiarity with the organization and the city made him partial to the Astros. And, since he had a no-trade clause, that was probably enough to clear the runway for Houston to acquire him.
From Heyman:
"The Dodgers also tried for new Astro Verlander, who was a late-arriving Astros pitcher in 2017, so the trashy title over LA wasn't a Dodgers concern. The issue is they seemed to be Verlander's second choice. One teammate suggested the Astros and Dodgers were the two possibilities for Verlander but that it might have taken extra convincing to accept LA since he loves Houston (and loved New York)."
This is the second time the Dodgers have been passed over by a pitcher with a no-trade clause who preferred the comforts of a smaller market. It's a strange moment in time for those accustomed to Los Angeles getting whoever they want, whenever they want. The Dodgers were also on the one-yard line of a trade for Tigers southpaw Eduardo Rodriguez before he vetoed the move in favor of remaining with Detroit.
Los Angeles hammered the pitching market hard, only to end up empty-handed. The Dodgers are still well positioned for a deep postseason run — especially with the Diamondbacks sliding — but the front office clearly would've felt more comfortable with another strong arm near the top of the rotation.
For the Mets, all is well that ends well. New York will owe a considerable dollar amount to Texas and Houston over the next few years, but Billy Eppler's repurposing of Steve Cohen's investment is on solid ground with a nice boon for the farm system.
