Max Scherzer in a Rare Club in Baseball History as Game 7 Looms in ALCS
The Texas Rangers beat the Houston Astros 9-2 on Sunday night in Game 6 of the ALCS, forcing a Game 7 to be played on Monday night at Minute Maid Park.
Future Hall of Famer Max Scherzer will get the ball in that one for Texas. It will be just his second appearance of the postseason after missing the first two rounds with injury.
As he prepares for the Game 7 start, Scherzer is in a rare club in baseball history.
Per Sarah Langs of MLB.com:
Max Scherzer will be the 5th pitcher to start a winner-take-all game for 3 franchises, joining:
Roger Clemens: BOS, NYY, HOU
Gerrit Cole: PIT, HOU, NYY
Zack Greinke: LAD, AZ, HOU
Jon Lester: BOS, OAK, CHC
There's also this note about Scherzer:
this will be Max Scherzer’s 5th start in a postseason winner-take-all game, tying Roger Clemens and Gerrit Cole for most all-time his team has won 3 of those starts, tied for most, with Clemens, Charlie Morton + Bret Saberhagen
Scherzer got knocked around in his earlier appearance in this series, a Game 3 start. He took the loss, surrendering five earned runs over 4.0 innings.
Between the New York Mets and the Rangers, Scherzer went 13-6 this season with a 3.77 ERA this regular season. He made 27 starts in total across the two franchises, striking out 174 batters in 152.2 innings.
One of the most accomplished pitchers of his generation, he's in his 16th year in the big leagues with the Diamondbacks, Tigers, Nationals, Dodgers, Mets and Rangers.
He's got 214 lifetime wins, is an eight-time All-Star and a three-time Cy Young winner. He also helped the Nationals win the 2019 World Series.
Game 7 of the ALCS is Monday night 8:03 p.m. ET.
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