Max Scherzer made his second start of the season for the Texas Rangers on Friday evening. Facing the Baltimore Orioles, he moved past one of the game’s legends on Major League Baseball’s all-time strikeout list.
With his second-inning strikeout of Ramón UrÃas, Scherzer reached 3,372 for his career and passed Greg Maddux for No. 11 on the all-time list. He recorded four strikeouts in a 2-1 loss, which put him 3,375 – 18 behind former teammate Justin Verlander.
Maddux wasn’t known as a strikeout pitcher, which feels like a gimmick he’s played on fans his entire career. Up until this season, he was in the top 10 for career strikeouts with 3,371.
Verlander passed Maddux for No. 10 last month, moving him into ninth place behind Walter Johnson’s 3,509. But Scherzer is gaining on Verlander, who is currently on the injured list, and could soon pass his two-time teammate. The two could spend the rest of their careers fighting to leapfrog each other and perhaps approach the top five of the all-time list.
No other active pitcher is likely to come close to Verlander and Scherzer. Clayton Kershaw is currently No. 21 with 2,944 strikeouts, Chris Sale is No. 56 with 2,307 and Gerrit Cole is No. 71 with 2,157 Ks.
List of all-time MLB strikeouts
1. Nolan Ryan — 5,714
2. Randy Johnson — 4,875
3. Roger Clemens – 4,672
4. Steve Carlton – 4,136
5. Bert Blyleven — 3,701
6. Tom Seaver – 3,640
7. Don Sutton — 3,574
8. Gaylord Perry — 3,534
9. Walter Johnson – 3,509
10. Justin Verlander – 3,393
