Washington baseball fans of the past decade no doubt have many fond memories of the great left-hander Max Scherzer.
In 2015, Scherzer signed a seven-year contract to pitch for Washington in a deal that set the Nationals up as force in the National League, culminating in a World Series title in 2019.
He won two Cy Young Awards with the Nationals and threw two no-hitters while here. The first, in June 2015, came within a strike of being a perfect game. He followed that gem with a one-hitter, the best back-to-back starts since Johnny Vander Meer’s two straight no-hitters in 1938. The next season, Scherzer won 20 games.
By one widely accepted measure, his greatest performance was his season-ending no-hitter on October 3, 2015. That day, he achieved the second highest game score (104, as calculated by Bill James) for a nine-inning game. He allowed no hits and no walks, striking out 17, against the New York Mets.
Yet a feat nearly as dominant came on May 11, 2016, against the Tigers at Nationals Park. He tied the nine-inning record by striking out 20 batters, walked nobody and threw one of his infrequent complete games, winning 3-2.
Detroit’s two runs came on solo homers, one of them by J.D. Martinez in the ninth inning to bring the tying run to the plate in the person of Miguel Cabrera. Scherzer struck him out swinging at a 1-2 pitch. But then Vic Martinez, who went 3-for-4 and was the only Tiger Scherzer didn’t strike out, lined a single to left.
Manager Dusty Baker must have been getting nervous by then, but this was Max Scherzer, after all, with 19 Ks. The lefty quickly disposed of Justin Upton, fanning him on three pitches for no. 20. That left it to catcher James McCann, who hit Max’s second pitch on the ground to third for the force at second.
Scherzer already had 18 strikeouts headed to the ninth. That gave him a chance to the all-time record of 21 in a single game of any length. Coincidentally, that was set by Tom Cheney of the Washington Senators in September 1962. He did it pitching 16 innings up the road in Baltimore against the Orioles.
“It crossed my mind,” Scherzer said of the record. “I was thinking of all the different scenarios in an 0–2 count that I could do to be able to get that last strikeout.”
Of the 20 Ks, 14 were swinging and eight required only three pitches. Scherzer threw just 23 pitches that were called balls, the fewest by any of the four pitchers (Roger Clemens twice, Kerry Wood and Randy Johnson) who have struck out 20 batters in nine innings.
“There’s something about 20,” Scherzer told reporters. “Tonight was an emotional game, facing a former team and all those guys I have so much respect for. And so to have a game like this against that caliber of hitter on their side, it really puts a feather in my cap.”
When it became clear by the trade deadline in 2021 that the aging Nationals weren’t going to make the playoffs, GM Mike Rizzo began dismantling the roster in search of prospects. Scherzer, his contract expiring, was traded along with fellow All-Star Trea Turner to the Dodgers. Washington got back righty Josiah Gray, a 2022 all-star, catcher Keibert Ruiz and two other minor leaguers who haven’t panned out.
A sure-bet first-ballot Hall of Famer, Scherzer might enter Cooperstown with a Nationals’ cap on his plaque, if he chooses to show any team. That will be a great day for Nats’ fans.
Washington baseball history 