Yankees: Max Scherzer’s dominant outing proves NYY must explore trade

The New York Yankees did eventually come back against the Washington Nationals, but starting pitcher Max Scherzer was absolutely dominant at times.

Scherzer pitched seven innings in the no-decision, striking out 14 Yankees in one of his best outings of the season against a poor lineup.

The Yankees have pitched better of late, but even the most cursory of examinations of their roster shows that starting pitching is the biggest need on this roster.

With the trade market likely going to be saturated with starting pitching, the Yankees need to choose which members of their depleted farm system to trade away.

The Nationals have fallen from the lofty heights of their championship days, meaning that they could be in a selling mood near the end of July. Scherzer could be on the move if they keep stinking it up in the standings, and the Yankees might be able to pounce on them if they outbid their rivals.

Scherzer was lethal on the mound this afternoon, and it should’ve crystallized in the Yankees’ minds that if they are in a position to be buyers at the trade deadline, Scherzer should be the No. 1 trade option that the front office considered.

The Yankees should look into trading for Max Scherzer.

Scherzer is still as unhittable as ever at age 37, as a lineup that hit very well in the Houston series couldn’t touch Scherzer with a paddle. A DJ LeMahieu single and a Kyle Higashioka home run in the third inning were the only hits that the future Hall of Famer surrendered on the afternoon.

Scherzer is an unrestricted free agent after this season, as his initial contract with Washington is starting to elapse. While this could make it a bit easier to trade for him, Scherzer won’t be given away by a Nationals team that could be mired in .500 mediocrity for peanuts. This will take some aggression from Brian Cashman.

Gerrit Cole has been the ace that the Yankees hoped for, and Corey Kluber’s last two starts have him looking more like the All-Star pitcher he was in Cleveland. Adding Scherzer to the mix would not only beef up the rotation, but it could make the Yankees favorites in the AL East.

Trading for Scherzer would be astronomically more difficult to pull off than adding someone at the back end of the rotation, but it could be the move that New York need to make if they want to truly cement themselves as contenders in an American League that is much deeper than originally believed.

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