The Max Scherzer sweepstakes is heating up, and the Mets are in the thick of it.
With the three-time Cy Young Award winner expected to make his free-agent decision by Monday, the Mets were pushing hard for Scherzer as of Sunday night and believed they had a shot at landing him, The Post’s Joel Sherman reported.
Scherzer was expected to prefer sticking on the West Coast, with the Dodgers and Angels among the teams pursuing him. But the Mets and owner Steve Cohen could offer a longer contract and/or more money to lure him to New York.
The 37-year-old right-hander posted a 2.46 ERA across 179 innings (30 starts) last season, split between the Nationals and Dodgers. Scherzer would provide a formidable 1-2 punch with co-ace Jacob deGrom atop the Mets’ rotation if they are able to land him.
As the race for Scherzer intensified, a backup option for the Mets came off the board when Kevin Gausman agreed to a reported five-year, $110 million deal with the Blue Jays on Sunday night.