Max Scherzer

Lore & Background

The Arizona Diamondbacks selected Scherzer with the 11th overall pick of the 2006 amateur draft. He made his MLB debut with the Diamondbacks in 2008. In December 2009, Scherzer was traded to the Detroit Tigers. During his five-year tenure in Detroit, Scherzer made the American League All-Star Team twice and won the 2013 American League Cy Young Award. Scherzer also helped the Tigers win four consecutive American League Central titles from 2011 to 2014. In 2015, Scherzer signed with the Washington Nationals, and became the fifth pitcher in Major League history to record multiple no-hitters in a single season. On May 11, 2016, in a game against the Tigers, he tied the major league nine-inning single-game strikeout record with 20, making him the second player to achieve both a no-hitter and 20 strikeouts over nine innings. In that same game, Scherzer became the youngest pitcher to beat all 30 MLB teams. Scherzer won the NL Cy Young Award in 2016 and 2017, and made the National League All-Star Team five times with the Nationals. In the 2019 World Series, against the Houston Astros, Scherzer earned a win in Game 1, and started Game 7, which the Nationals also won (Scherzer received a no-decision) for their first World Series championship. Scherzer was traded to the Dodgers in 2021 where they reached the 2021 NLCS, and he finished 3rd in NL Cy Young voting. As a free agent, he signed with the Mets and was named to the All-MLB Team at the conclusion of the 2022 season. Midway into the 2023 season, Scherzer was traded to the Rangers, where he started Games 3 and 7 of the 2023 ALCS against the Astros, and Game 3 of the 2023 World Series as the Rangers won their first championship.

In Their Own Story

The lights at Comerica Park hummed their low amber glow. Third inning, two on, count 2-2. Scherzer stood in the circle, spit on the mound, wiped his glove on his thigh. The batter shifted his weight, stared at the mound like he was trying to read a mind. Scherzer didn't blink. He set his front foot, the ball disappeared up the middle of the plate—98, 99, gone. The batter swung through air. The crowd exhaled, then roared. Scherzer pointed at him, jaw tight, and walked back to the mound like it was nothing. Like it was the most natural thing in the world. Because to him, it was.

Reader's Guide

Scherzer is the fifth pitcher to start an All-Star Game for both the American and National Leagues. He is a four-time wins leader and a winner of three strikeout titles. One of the most consistent hurlers of his era, he made at least 30 starts each season from 2009 to 2018 and struck out at least 230 batters in each season from 2012 to 2019. In 2017, he became the third-fastest player ever to record 2,000 career strikeouts and the fourth to strike out 250 or more in four consecutive seasons. Scherzer recorded more wins (161) and strikeouts (2,452) than any pitcher in the 2010s. He joined the 3,000 strikeout club on September 12, 2021, and has struck out the ninth most all-time. In 2023, he became only the fourth pitcher in Major League history to win multiple World Series championships, win multiple Cy Young Awards, throw multiple no-hitters, and earn multiple All-Star selections; the others are Hall of Famer Sandy Koufax, Tim Lincecum and former teammate Justin Verlander. Scherzer is currently the second oldest active player in Major League Baseball, after Verlander. On June 10, 2026, Scherzer became the eleventh pitcher in Major League Baseball history to record 3,500 career strikeouts.

Did You Know?

• Scherzer was born in St. Louis and grew up a St. Louis Cardinals fan.
• He played baseball, football, and basketball at Parkway Central High School.
• He was selected in the 43rd round of the 2003 MLB draft by the Cardinals but did not sign.
• Scherzer attended the University of Missouri and won the Big 12 Pitcher of the Year Award in 2005.
• He was inducted into the University of Missouri Intercollegiate Athletics Hall of Fame on January 9, 2012.