The Yankees added a big piece to their lineup last weekend in Edwin Encarnacion and their focus is now on improving the rotation.
General manager Brian Cashman told reporters earlier this week the team is compiling a list of names to pursue at the trade deadline.
"It's a process we're working through, and we'll see," Cashman told reporters. "We're certainly compiling a list of the names that are available that are obvious, and we're compiling a list of the names that might become available."
Apparently, he values one of those name above all the others.
Cashman "would do whatever it takes" to get Nationals ace and three-time Cy Young winner Max Scherzer, according to a report from SNY, which cites unidentified league sources.
Scherzer has been the talk of rumors for the last few weeks as the Nationals continue to hover around .500, though they have played better as of late.
Many pundits think the Nationals could decide to sell off pieces if they fall out of the race, and if that is to happen, Scherzer could be on the move.
The Yankees are in pursuit of a front-line starter, but they won't sell the farm for Giants pitcher Madison Bumgarner, so it's more likely that they could pursue Scherzer or even a starter like Trevor Bauer from the Indians or Matt Boyd from the Tigers.
If New York was to land Scherzer, the one-two punch of him and James Paxton, who the team acquired in the offseason from the Mariners, would be as formidable as any in MLB and would certainly match up with Houston's pair of Justin Verlander and Gerrit Cole — who they could match up with in the playoffs.
And if the team got Luis Severino back fully healthy, no team would have a 1-2-3 to match that rotation.
So the Yankees would, of course, do whatever it takes to land Scherzer. The only problem is, according to SNY, the Nationals are not likely to sell the righty.
"No chance," one source told SNY. "Even if (general manager Mike) Rizzo wanted to do it, ownership wouldn't let him. They want Scherzer to be their first Hall of Famer."
This make sense because the Nationals wouldn't even sell Bryce Harper when they were out of the race at the deadline last season and he was likely to leave in free agency.
They had a deal lined up with the Astros to move Harper for several top prospects but wouldn't do it.
So while Cashman might do all he can to get Scherzer, but there may be no offer that could actually land him, at least not this season with two and a half years and more than $60 million left on his contract.