Max Scherzer Becomes 3rd-Fastest Pitcher to Reach 2,000 Strikeouts

Washington Nationals star Max Scherzer tallied his 2,000th career strikeout Sunday against the Texas Rangers.

According to the MLB Twitter account, he was the third-fastest player to reach the milestone, with only Pedro Martinez and Randy Johnson needing fewer innings. Scherzer entered the day with a National League-leading 114 strikeouts.

Scherzer's fifth strikeout in the fourth inning got him to 2,000.

The 32-year-old has been one of the most consistent pitchers in the majors over the past few years. He has finished in the top five in Cy Young Award voting in each of the last four years, winning the award twice.

The No. 11 pick in the 2006 MLB draft out of the University of Missouri has seemingly only gotten better with age, improving his strikeout rate in each of the last four years. He led all pitchers with 284 K's in 2016, and his 12.2 strikeouts per nine innings in 2017 would be a career best.

Considering Scherzer's recent pace, it wouldn't be surprising to see him join the 16 members of the 3,000 strikeout club in a handful of years.