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Max Scherzer is in his 7th big league season. To date, he is 90-50 with 1,312 strikeouts, a 3.59 ERA, a 117 ERA+ and only 385 walks allowed in 1,233.1 innings. He was an All-Star in both 2013 and 2014 and last year he won the AL Cy Young Award, the AL Sporting News Pitcher of the Year and finished 12th in MVP voting.
Since 2010, Scherzer has averaged 16 wins, 213 strikeouts, 60 walks, only 179 hits allowed and 200 innings pitched per season. He's led the league in wins once, WHIP once, winning percentage once, K/9 IP once and pitcher fielding percentage once. He currently leads all active pitchers in career K/9 IP ratio, and is 4th all-time, behind only Randy Johnson, Kerry Wood and Pedro Martinez. He also ranks 5th among active hurlers in winning percentage (behind C. Kershaw, J. Weaver, A. Wainwright and J. Santana) and 7th in FIP (between Z. Greinke and Santana/J. Verlander).
It should be noted that Scherzer's mediocre 2011 campaign really hurts his overall statistics. Though he went 15-9 with 174 strikeouts, his ERA was a career-worst 4.43, his ERA+ was a meager 93 and it's the only year, to date, that he has allowed more hits than innings pitched. Take away that season and his career ERA drops 0.14 point to 3.45 and his ERA+ jumps six points to 123.
The hurler has also excelled in the postseason. Overall, he is 4-2 with a 3.42 ERA in 11 games (9 starts) and in 55.1 innings, he has surrendered only 39 hits and struck out 74 batters. In the 2011 ALDS, he posted a 1.23 ERA in two games, winning one. He had a 0.00 ERA in his lone start of the 2012 ALDS and in that year's Championship Series, he was 1-0 with a 1.59 ERA. Between the 2012 ALDS and ALCS, he had 18 strikeouts in 11 innings. Continuing his dominance in the 2013 playoffs, Scherzer was 2-0 with 13 strikeouts in nine innings in the ALDS and in the Championship Series, he had 21 Ks in 13.1 innings, while posting a 2.70 ERA.
He doesn't get to bat much in the American League, but when he was with the Diamondbacks, he showed some aptitude with the stick. In 2009, he hit .226 in 53 at-bats, hitting two doubles and scoring four runs. He contributed 0.3 oWAR that season.
Statistically, Scherzer is similar to Yovani Gallardo, Gio Gonzalez, Rich Harden, Johnny Cueto, Steve Busby, Josh Johnson, Britt Burns, Anibal Sanchez, Dave Boswell and Shaun Marcum. Through age 28 - how old he was last year - Scherzer was most similar to Roy Halladay, Rick Sutcliffe, Matt Morris, Kevin Brown, David Cone, Hall of Famer Jim Bunning, Harden, Kerry Wood and Pat Malone. He currently ranks #318 on the Fan EloRater, between Jim Scott and Mike Hampton.
What are your thoughts on Max Scherzer? Should he make the Hall of Fame when he becomes eligible? Does he have Hall of Fame potential? Did he ever have Hall of Fame potential?
Since 2010, Scherzer has averaged 16 wins, 213 strikeouts, 60 walks, only 179 hits allowed and 200 innings pitched per season. He's led the league in wins once, WHIP once, winning percentage once, K/9 IP once and pitcher fielding percentage once. He currently leads all active pitchers in career K/9 IP ratio, and is 4th all-time, behind only Randy Johnson, Kerry Wood and Pedro Martinez. He also ranks 5th among active hurlers in winning percentage (behind C. Kershaw, J. Weaver, A. Wainwright and J. Santana) and 7th in FIP (between Z. Greinke and Santana/J. Verlander).
It should be noted that Scherzer's mediocre 2011 campaign really hurts his overall statistics. Though he went 15-9 with 174 strikeouts, his ERA was a career-worst 4.43, his ERA+ was a meager 93 and it's the only year, to date, that he has allowed more hits than innings pitched. Take away that season and his career ERA drops 0.14 point to 3.45 and his ERA+ jumps six points to 123.
The hurler has also excelled in the postseason. Overall, he is 4-2 with a 3.42 ERA in 11 games (9 starts) and in 55.1 innings, he has surrendered only 39 hits and struck out 74 batters. In the 2011 ALDS, he posted a 1.23 ERA in two games, winning one. He had a 0.00 ERA in his lone start of the 2012 ALDS and in that year's Championship Series, he was 1-0 with a 1.59 ERA. Between the 2012 ALDS and ALCS, he had 18 strikeouts in 11 innings. Continuing his dominance in the 2013 playoffs, Scherzer was 2-0 with 13 strikeouts in nine innings in the ALDS and in the Championship Series, he had 21 Ks in 13.1 innings, while posting a 2.70 ERA.
He doesn't get to bat much in the American League, but when he was with the Diamondbacks, he showed some aptitude with the stick. In 2009, he hit .226 in 53 at-bats, hitting two doubles and scoring four runs. He contributed 0.3 oWAR that season.
Statistically, Scherzer is similar to Yovani Gallardo, Gio Gonzalez, Rich Harden, Johnny Cueto, Steve Busby, Josh Johnson, Britt Burns, Anibal Sanchez, Dave Boswell and Shaun Marcum. Through age 28 - how old he was last year - Scherzer was most similar to Roy Halladay, Rick Sutcliffe, Matt Morris, Kevin Brown, David Cone, Hall of Famer Jim Bunning, Harden, Kerry Wood and Pat Malone. He currently ranks #318 on the Fan EloRater, between Jim Scott and Mike Hampton.
What are your thoughts on Max Scherzer? Should he make the Hall of Fame when he becomes eligible? Does he have Hall of Fame potential? Did he ever have Hall of Fame potential?
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