Max Scherzer of the Washington Nationals became one of only three major league pitchers in history to strike out 20 batters in a nine-inning game, helping his team to a 3-2 victory against the Detroit Tigers on Wednesday night. Scherzer threw 119 pitches, allowed two runs on seven hits, and walked zero batters to get the win.
The accomplishment is just one of many for the right-hander, who won the prestigious Cy Young Award in 2013; Scherzer has also thrown two no-hitters and come within one strike of a perfect game. But this record was personal: Scherzer turned down a $144 million, six-year contract extension with the Detroit two off-seasons ago, instead accepting his current seven-year, $210 million contract with Washington.
"I almost needed the Tigers to come in and get me amped up to get me going," Scherzer said. "And to be able to punch out 20, it's sexy."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Watch the sexy in action, below. Jeva Lange
Max Scherzer tied the MLB record with 20 strikeouts in a game. Twenty. TWENTY! (: @nationals)A video posted by SB Nation (@sbnation) on May 12, 2016 at 5:45am PDT
-
From Da Vinci to a golden toilet: a history of museum heistsIn the Spotlight Following the ‘spectacular’ events at the Louvre, museums are ‘increasingly being targeted by criminal gangs’
-
Can Gen Z uprisings succeed where other protest movements failed?Today's Big Question Apolitical and leaderless, youth-led protests have real power but are vulnerable to the strongman opportunist
-
The allegations of Christian genocide in NigeriaThe Explainer West African nation has denied claims from US senator and broadcaster
-
Hungary’s Krasznahorkai wins Nobel for literatureSpeed Read László Krasznahorkai is the author of acclaimed novels like ‘The Melancholy of Resistance’ and ‘Satantango’
-
Primatologist Jane Goodall dies at 91Speed Read She rose to fame following her groundbreaking field research with chimpanzees
-
Florida erases rainbow crosswalk at Pulse nightclubSpeed Read The colorful crosswalk was outside the former LGBTQ nightclub where 49 people were killed in a 2016 shooting
-
Trump says Smithsonian too focused on slavery's illsSpeed Read The president would prefer the museum to highlight 'success,' 'brightness' and 'the future'
-
Trump to host Kennedy Honors for Kiss, StalloneSpeed Read Actor Sylvester Stallone and the glam-rock band Kiss were among those named as this year's inductees
-
White House seeks to bend Smithsonian to Trump's viewSpeed Read The Smithsonian Institution's 21 museums are under review to ensure their content aligns with the president's interpretation of American history
-
Charlamagne Tha God irks Trump with Epstein talkSpeed Read The radio host said the Jeffrey Epstein scandal could help 'traditional conservatives' take back the Republican Party
-
CBS cancels Colbert's 'Late Show'Speed Read 'The Late Show with Stephen Colbert' is ending next year
