Rangers manager Bruce Bochy on Max Scherzer trade: 'We mean business'

The Texas Rangers have been among the biggest and best surprises of the 2023 MLB season. They are currently 60-46 and have a half-game lead on the Houston Astros in the AL West. 

Houston won't be going away and this divisional race will likely go down to the wire, which is why the Rangers traded for Mets starting pitcher Max Scherzer. 

Scherzer, a three-time Cy Young Award winner, could be what puts Texas over the top, and it has Rangers manager Bruce Bochy fired up. 

"We're pumped about it," Bochy said, per MLB.com. "We're getting an experienced guy with a tremendous resume. We're very excited to have Max join us." 

Scherzer, 39, has a 9-4 record this season with a 4.01 ERA, which is far above his career ERA of 3.15. Still, acquiring Scherzer is a worthy gamble for a team like the Rangers who are pushing all their chips to the middle of the table and going all-in on a World Series title this year. 

Bochy explained the impact a trade of this magnitude has on the clubhouse. 

"For the players, hey, we mean business and we're here to win," Bochy said. "It's always a great message when a team does something like this."

Bochy said that he has Scherzer penciled in to start on Thursday against the Chicago White Sox. This start will mark the first time Scherzer's pitched for an American League club since he did so with the Detroit Tigers back in 2014. 

Scherzer's destined for a trip to Cooperstown and a Hall of Fame induction after he retires, but before he calls it quits, he'd like another World Series trophy. In 16 seasons, Scherzer has experienced a World Series win just once, in 2019 with the Washington Nationals. Scherzer's been part of many playoff runs, nine to be exact, and this season with the Rangers will be No. 10.