King of the Hill: Scherzer eclipses Kershaw as baseball's most dominant
By Patrick Zeng
@Roundtripper891
Both ace's play for two of the National League's best teams, toeing the rubber as each club's stopper, star and ace. But a dive into the numbers show that this year, Scherzer is baseball's best, not Kershaw. Coming off a Cy Young season, Scherzer boasts the top ERA in baseball with a 2.06 mark in comparison to Kershaw's 2.47 via MLB.com. He also leads MLB in batting average against holding opponents to a minuscule .164 clip as well proving his ability as a workhorse by being tied for the lead in innings pitched with 113 2/3. While Kershaw clocks in with a .207 BAA and 109 1/3 innings pitched. Scherzer also rakes up 11.96 K/9 this season, topping the mark of 10.3 K/9 being slung by the smooth LA lefty.
A further dive displays that Scherzer has pitched to a tune of a .78 WHIP. That means that Scherzer allows well under 1 base runner per inning. Kershaw isn't far behind him at a .92 WHIP from baseballreference.com. Scherzer also has a stark lead in home runs allowed allowing 12 HRs this season, bettering Kershaw's mark of 17. And Scherzer has also tallied up two complete games while surprising Kershaw is yet to register any.
The two also have clear similarities this season. Both average 15 pitches per inning, allowing for themselves to pitch deep into games. And they also are eerily similar in strike percentage with Kershaw firing 68% of his pitches for strikes and Scherzer stating his case with 69% of his pitches being strikes.
A staggering statistic from Scherzer's tenure in DC is that he has taken a no hitter into the 6th inning in 13% of his starts. That is the definition of dominance as every time out on the mound, Scherzer breeds excellence, dominance and most importantly for the Nationals, wins.
The Washington Nationals have been reaping the benefits ever since inking Max Scherzer to his 7 year $210 million contract. He has been nothing short of incredible during his time in DC but this season has somehow eclipsed his previous two. There are no doubts that these two are two of the best Major League Baseball has to offer, and it's quite possible that when it's all said and done that both these starters end up in Cooperstown. While conventional wisdom has us automatically assume Kershaw is baseball's main man, the numbers tell a different story, that instead it is Max Scherzer that has placed himself as the king of the hill.
@Roundtripper891
📸: Sporting News
The 2017 season has seen a changing of the guard when it comes to baseball's dominant ace. DC's coup in the winter of 2014 when Max Scherzer was acquired has been nothing short of marvelous for Nationals. Scherzer has stared in his two plus seasons in the nation's capital compiling 43 wins and a 2.71 era. Whenever pitching and dominance are referenced in today's game, Clayton Kershaw is automatically the first thought. And over their careers, Kershaw will be viewed as the better pitcher in comparison to Scherzer but the 2017 season has been writing a different narrative.Both ace's play for two of the National League's best teams, toeing the rubber as each club's stopper, star and ace. But a dive into the numbers show that this year, Scherzer is baseball's best, not Kershaw. Coming off a Cy Young season, Scherzer boasts the top ERA in baseball with a 2.06 mark in comparison to Kershaw's 2.47 via MLB.com. He also leads MLB in batting average against holding opponents to a minuscule .164 clip as well proving his ability as a workhorse by being tied for the lead in innings pitched with 113 2/3. While Kershaw clocks in with a .207 BAA and 109 1/3 innings pitched. Scherzer also rakes up 11.96 K/9 this season, topping the mark of 10.3 K/9 being slung by the smooth LA lefty.
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| 📸: Scout.com |
The two also have clear similarities this season. Both average 15 pitches per inning, allowing for themselves to pitch deep into games. And they also are eerily similar in strike percentage with Kershaw firing 68% of his pitches for strikes and Scherzer stating his case with 69% of his pitches being strikes.
A staggering statistic from Scherzer's tenure in DC is that he has taken a no hitter into the 6th inning in 13% of his starts. That is the definition of dominance as every time out on the mound, Scherzer breeds excellence, dominance and most importantly for the Nationals, wins.
The Washington Nationals have been reaping the benefits ever since inking Max Scherzer to his 7 year $210 million contract. He has been nothing short of incredible during his time in DC but this season has somehow eclipsed his previous two. There are no doubts that these two are two of the best Major League Baseball has to offer, and it's quite possible that when it's all said and done that both these starters end up in Cooperstown. While conventional wisdom has us automatically assume Kershaw is baseball's main man, the numbers tell a different story, that instead it is Max Scherzer that has placed himself as the king of the hill.
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| 📸: Washington Times |
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