Analyst says Mets could trade former Cy Young Award winner to former team

The idea comes as Scherzer's current squad -- the New York Mets -- come out of the All-Star break at 42-48, in fourth place in the NL East and 18.5 games behind the division-leading Atlanta Braves (60-29). The Mets have lots of ground to make up in the wild card race too, as they sit seven games back of the San Francisco Giants (49-41) for the final playoff spot and are looking at four teams between them and manager Gabe Kapler's club.

New York's unexpected struggles this year have many pundits saying that they should be sellers ahead of the Aug. 1 trade deadline, and some even suggesting that now's the time to move on from both Scherzer and co-ace Justin Verlander.

The Arizona Diamondbacks (52-39), meanwhile, are arguably the most pleasant surprise in MLB this season, entering Friday in a virtual tie atop the NL West with the heavily favored Los Angeles Dodgers (51-38).

The D-backs offense boasts a trio of All-Stars -- including NL Rookie of the Year candidate Corbin Carroll -- and All-Star starter Zac Gallen leading their rotation. Gallen could use some help at the top of the starting five though, especially with No. 2 arm Merrill Kelly on the injured list with a calf issue.

After originally being selected out of high school by the St. Louis Cardinals in the 43rd round of the 2003 MLB June Amateur Draft, Scherzer was chosen by Arizona as the 11th overall pick in the 2006 event. The soon-to-be 39-year-old made his big-league debut early in the 2008 campaign and spent two uneventful seasons in the desert before being sent to the Detroit Tigers as part of a three-team trade in December 2009.

Scherzer's career took off during his fourth year in Detroit in 2013, as he made the first of his seven straight All-Star teams and won the first of his three Cy Young awards.

Despite being one of the best pitchers in baseball over the last decade, the righty has bounced around a bit, suiting up for five different organizations and being involved in two trades. If Rose's prediction comes true, Scherzer will not only be dealt for a third time but land back where his future Hall-of-Fame career began.