Although Clayton Kershaw and Max Scherzer made their respective MLB debuts in the same season, Friday’s matchup was just their third time starting opposite one another, even when including the postseason.
The duel was also of note in terms of historical purposes, as it was just the 13th time (10th in the regular season) pitchers with at least three Cy Young Awards started in the same game. To many, Kershaw is the best pitcher of his generation.
Scherzer is on the periphery of that discussion, but in recent seasons has been considered at least one of the top pitchers in baseball. Kershaw outlasted Scherzer in the series opener at Dodger Stadium, seven innings to six, the latter had more success.
While they were pitted against each other, Kershaw and Scherzer share an admiration for one another. Scherzer explained why he views the Dodgers’ ace as a barometer of sorts, via Tim Brown of Yahoo! Sports:
“I mean, yeah,” he said. “You don’t measure yourself against the worst, you measure yourself against the best. … He attacks the zone. Doesn’t walk guys. Brings it every single time.”
Scherzer held the Dodgers to just one run on four hits over six innings. He finished with nine strikeouts and three walks, and frustrated Cody Bellinger with his ability to work out of multiple jams.
With the win, Scherzer improved to 4-1, helped the Nationals improve to .500 on the season and defeat Kershaw for the first time since 2010.
