The Los Angeles Dodgers, San Diego Padres and San Francisco Giants have battled for the National League West supremacy, and now the teams appear to be jockeying with one another as the MLB trade deadline approaches at 1 p.m. PT on Friday.
All three teams are in search of pitching help, among other roster upgrades, and they have ben linked to the Max Scherzer sweepstakes in recent days. The purported interest appears to be mutual, as Scherzer is believed to prefer a trade to the Dodgers, Giants or Padres.
The Washington Nationals would need to work with the future Hall of Famer as he holds a full no-trade clause as a result of being a player with 10-and-5 rights.
That may not prove to be much of an obstacle as according to Jim Bowden of The Athletic, the Dodgers and Giants have emerged as leaders for a Scherzer trade:
In terms of Scherzer, the Giants and Dodgers are the front-runners to acquire the Nationals’ ace, but they are not close to the finish line, according to sources. I was also told to not rule out the Padres, Red Sox and Rays in the Scherzer sweepstakes.
While there may be mutual interest between the Dodgers and Scherzer, the prospect of a trade coming to fruition may hinge on whether or not Keibert Ruiz would be included in a deal.
Jim Bowden said this is one theoretical trade he's been asked about by someone/people in baseball:#Dodgers trade Josiah Gray, Diego Cartaya and Gavin Lux to the #Nats for Max Scherzer and Trea Turner.https://t.co/lJf7Br1g6c
— Matthew Moreno (@MMoreno1015) July 28, 2021
The Dodgers reportedly are against trading their top prospect for a player who is not under team control beyond this season. The Minnesota Twins also are said to covet Ruiz in a potential trade for José Berríos.
Scherzer contract extension?
It’s unclear if the Dodgers would be open to negotiating one, but it’s believed Scherzer would seek a contract extension if traded. Should L.A. be amenable to such an arrangement, it theoretically could alleviate concerns with trading Ruiz.
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