Scherzer passes Gaylord Perry for 9th in career strikeouts

Toronto Blue Jays starter Max Scherzer overtook Hall of Famer Gaylord Perry for ninth all time in strikeouts with his 10th and final punchout Sunday against the Seattle Mariners.

Scherzer, 42, allowed a single hit over seven innings with one walk before exiting with the Blue Jays up 4-0. He reached the milestone with strikeout No. 3,535. Scherzer is now 19 short of matching Justin Verlander’s 3,554 for eighth all time.

“When you’re on that list – I respect who is on this list – to be moving up in the top 10 all-time means something,” Scherzer said. “It’s great to do it at home and have the fans get into it. That’s a special moment.”

Toronto added another three runs following Scherzer’s departure, while the bullpen continued to keep the Mariners scoreless for a 7-0 victory. The win completes a three-game series sweep for the Blue Jays, who move to within 1.5 games of the Cleveland Guardians for the final wild-card berth in the American League.

They’ll visit Cleveland for a three-game set beginning Tuesday.

Sunday’s start was Scherzer’s best of the season; he had yet to go seven innings or hold opponents to one hit in any of his previous 12 starts. He became the oldest pitcher to throw a 10-strikeout game while allowing no more than one hit since 44-year-old Nolan Ryan no-hit the Blue Jays on May 1, 1991.

“That was vintage Max,” manager John Schneider said.

The veteran hurler is now posting a 6.16 ERA over 57 innings in 2026.

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