Clayton Kershaw and Max Scherzer were selected four picks apart in the 2006 MLB Draft, have both won three Cy Young Awards and are still adding to their Hall of Fame résumés, with their latest chapters coming in the same game on Friday.
The Los Angeles Dodgers and Toronto Blue Jays veterans started against each other for the fifth time of their 19-year professional careers. As many have noted recently, their first clash came on Sept. 7, 2008, when they were both late additions after two other future Hall of Famers — Randy Johnson and Greg Maddux — were both scratched.
It was the first time in MLB history two pitchers started against each other as rookies and went on to accumulate at least 3,000 strikeouts each, per MLB.com’s Sarah Langs.
On Friday, it was Kershaw who got the better of Scherzer in a battle of first-place teams. Both pitchers threw six innings each, but Kershaw allowed one run fewer in a 5-1 Dodgers win.
The decisive hit came in the fifth inning off Scherzer, from another Hall of Famer in Mookie Betts. The former MVP broke his recent slump with a two-run homer, his first long ball since July 7.
Kershaw getting the win ties him with his former Dodgers teammate at 218 career wins. The start also saw him strike out Vladimir Guerrero Jr., which is notable because Kershaw faced Guerrero’s father Vladimir Sr. when he was 21 years old.
Scherzer and Kershaw are the 19th and 20th pitchers to reach 3,000 strikeouts in their career, with Kershaw reaching the milestone earlier this season. Per MLB.com, Friday was only the fourth time in MLB history that two pitchers with 3,000 punch-outs already on their ledger faced each other. The other three:
• Sept. 6, 2023: Scherzer vs. Justin Verlander
• Sept. 16, 2007: Curt Schillingvs. Roger Clemens
• July 19, 2006: Greg Maddux vs. Clemens
Neither pitcher has performed to their previous Cy Young standards this year, which isn’t exactly a surprise when Scherzer is 41 years old and Kershaw is 37. Scherzer holds a 4.21 ERA this season, on pace for his worst mark since 2011 when he was still figuring things out with the Detroit Tigers. Kershaw has remained effective when healthy with a 3.14 ERA, but it’s also been six years since he pitched 140 innings in a season.
When they’re facing each other, it doesn’t really matter. Fans in attendance will be able to say they saw a game between Clayton Kershaw and Max Scherzer, and it’s that kind of memory on which baseball is built. It’s why fans were eagerly awaiting that Johnson-Maddux matchup 17 years ago, then got something even more interesting.
Read the full article here