Entering the 2026 season, there are a couple of incredible milestones that are near to be reached. One of those is from Toronto Blue Jays starting pitcher Max Scherzer, as he enters his 19th season in Major League Baseball. 

Scherzer, who has 3489 strikeouts for his career, can move into the top-10 strikeout leaders of all-time. Even more than that, he can catch up to Detroit Tigers starting pitcher, and a future Hall of Famer himself, Justin Verlander. The duo has been in the annual Cy Young conversations for much of the last two decades, and now both are going to be showcased near the top of one of the most important statistics for a pitcher. 

Can Scherzer crack the top 10, catch Verlander?

For Scherzer to crack the top 10 for career strikeouts, he has to hit 3515 to tie Washington Nationals legend Walter Johnson. That is only 26 punchouts away from now, and the list gets even closer from positions 10 through eight. Gaylord Perry holds the ninth spot, for now, with 3534 strikeouts, which is 45 away from Scherzer. Then it is Justin Verlander, who will obviously be playing in 2026, but he holds the eighth spot with 3553 K’s, which is 64 ahead of Scherzer. 

Both Scherzer and Verlander have a chance to hold the seventh and eighth spots at the end of this upcoming season. Currently, Verlander will likely pass by Don Sutton, who is currently in seventh all-time with 3574 strikeouts. For Scherzer to eclipse Sutton and sit behind Verlander, he needs to strike out 85 batters this season. That is doable, depending on how many starts he gets. In 2025, he had 82 strikeouts in 17 starts, and that should be his workload for the Blue Jays this season. 

What a legendary list of pitchers to potentially make up the top-seven strikeout leaders of all-time. Nolan Ryan, Randy Johnson, Roger Clemens, Steve Carlton, Bert Blyleven, Tom Seaver, Justin Verlander, and finally, Max Scherzer.Â