The Toronto Blue Jays are in the midst of their matchup against the Seattle Mariners.
Amid the clash, Max Scherzer further stamped his name into MLB history.
As reported by Mitch Bannon of The Athletic (via X), Scherzer is now tied with Hall of Famer Gaylord Perry for the ninth-most strikeouts.
He’s trails his pal Justin Verlander by 20 for 8th. #BlueJays
Toronto Blue Jays’ Max Scherzer Climbs Strikeout Leaderboard
According to Baseball-Reference.com, Nolan Ryan still sits atop the strikeout leaderboard with 5,714 strikeouts.
He is then trailed by Randy Johnson (4,875), Roger Clemens (4,672), Steve Carlton (4,136), Bert Blyleven (3,701), Tom Seaver (3,640), Don Sutton (3,574), Justin Verlander (3,554) and now Perry and Scherzer with 3,534 strikeouts.
This means Scherzer is only 20 strikeouts away from tying with 43-year-old Verlander.
At the time of this writing, 42-year-old Scherzer owns a 6.38 ERA and 45 strikeouts across 55.0 innings of work through 13 starts.
He’s walked 26 batters along the way.
Scherzer is now playing in his 19th year of Major League Baseball. This is only his second year playing for the Blue Jays.
He kicked off his career after the Arizona Diamondbacks selected him 11th overall in the first round of the 2006 MLB draft.
Scherzer made his debut with the franchise in April 2008.
He spent two seasons with the Diamondbacks before they shipped him out to the Detroit Tigers. Scherzer went on to spend five years in the Motor City.
In January 2015, he signed with the Washington Nationals, who later traded him to the Los Angeles Dodgers in November 2021 alongside Trea Turner.
In return, the Nationals received Donovan Casey, Gerardo Carrillo, Josiah Gray and Keibert Ruiz.
Soon after, he found himself landing with the New York Mets for two years before heading to the Texas Rangers, followed by the Blue Jays.
Snapshot of Where the Blue Jays Stand As the Postseason Nears
As Toronto entered its 2026 campaign after a phenomenal run to the World Series in 2025, hopes were held high that perhaps the organization could make a comeback.
However, looking at their dreadful67-70 overall record, they’ve done anything but.
The Blue Jays are placed last in the American League East standings, behind the Baltimore Orioles (67-69), the Boston Red Sox (74-62), the New York Yankees (77-59) and the Tampa Bay Rays (81-54).
As Toronto wraps up its series against the Mariners, the ballclub will soon hit the road and head to Progressive Field to face the Cleveland Guardians for a three-game series.
The set will begin on Tuesday, Sept. 1, at 6:40 p.m. ET.
Rounding out the end of the week will be another three-game stretch against the Kansas City Royals.
The postseason is creeping up, but the Blue Jays’ entire season has been quite rocky — reaching contention seemed out of reach.
Their play could always take a miraculous turn, but ending their season on a high note would be worth chasing regardless.
Toronto Blue Jays’ Max Scherzer Ties Hall of Famer Gaylord Perry in Key Metric