Rangers’ trade for Max Scherzer is looking more and more like a colossal blunder

The defending World Series champion Texas Rangers haven't exactly had a successful 2024 season. In a year where they were set to defend their title, things haven't gone according to plan. After opening the second half with a series loss to the Baltimore Orioles, the Rangers find themselves at 47-52, five games back of first place in the AL West and 7.5 back in the Wild Card race.

Texas made a key move last year at the deadline, acquiring right-hander Max Scherzer from the New York Mets. The hope was that Scherzer would bolster the rotation, but he's dealt with multiple injuries already and had a tough outing on Saturday against Baltimore.

Scherzer allowed four runs in just two innings of work and complained about arm fatigue in his postgame interview.

Max Scherzer trade looks like a mistake for Rangers

While Scherzer's competitive spirit is hard to match, the 39-year-old right-hander hasn't exactly been able to stay healthy. Saturday was his sixth start back from the injured list, and things already appear to be going downhill.

Texas gave up tip prospect Luisangel Acuña, the brother of Ronald Acuña Jr., in the deal, while the Mets paid down a good portion of Scherzer's salary. But with Scherzer now struggling to produce, as well as stay healthy, the deal is looking like a mistake on the Rangers' part, and this is the last thing Texas needs right now, especially when they're trying to salvage the 2024 season.

Some might argue that it doesn't matter because Texas won a title and has a stacked farm system, but Scherzer didn't contribute to the team's championship run. Additionally, the Rangers' farm system has taken a bit of a hit due to a lot of recent promotions.

The former Cy Young Award winner is 1-3 with a 3.99 ERA in his six starts this year and his inability to stay on the field is killing the Rangers as they try to figure out how they'll handle the trade deadline. Scherzer was limited last year during the run to the World Series and missed most of the first half with arm troubles. The arm fatigue he dealt with on Saturday night certainly is a bad sign going forward because it's more of the same and is compounding with other issues.

If the Rangers are going to salvage their season, they're probably going to need Scherzer close to his peak powers because of the limited trade deadline targets as well as the longer-term injuries the team is dealing with in the rotation. Fans are just hoping Acuña doesn't turn into an All-Star, because that would really cement the conversation.