‘Returning ace’ Clayton Kershaw, 35, pitched a perfect game to help the Los Angeles Dodgers snap a four-game losing streak and remain exactly 100 strikeouts shy of 3,000 for his career.
The Los Angeles Dodgers hosted the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati, Ohio, on Sept. 9 (KST).
Kershaw started the game for the Dodgers and threw 98 pitches (64 for strikes) over seven innings, allowing five hits and no runs. He struck out nine.
The Dodgers cruised to a 6-0 victory over Cincinnati behind Kershaw’s dominant performance and a batting lineup that scored three runs in the third and fourth innings. They snapped a four-game losing streak.
With the win, Kershaw is now 8-4 with a 2.95 ERA in 13 starts on the season, throwing 76 1/3 innings. 93 strikeouts.
Notably, Kershaw added nine more strikeouts on the day, giving him 2900 for his career. He’s exactly 100 strikeouts shy of 3,000.
A full-time starter typically lasts 32-33 games, barring injury, which means Kershaw still has 19 games left in the season if he stays injury-free.
If Kershaw averages just six strikeouts in the remaining games, he will reach 3,000 career strikeouts this season.
Kershaw ranks fourth among active players in this category. Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander have already surpassed 3200 strikeouts, while Zack Greinke has 2932.스포츠토토
In total, 19 players have reached 3,000 strikeouts in Major League Baseball history, meaning Greinke and Kershaw are in contention to become the 20th player to reach 3,000 strikeouts.
It will be interesting to see if Kershaw, who hasn’t pitched a full season without injury since 2015, can reach 3,000 strikeouts this season while pitching full-time at the age of 35.