Clayton Kershaw Achieves Baseball Immortality: 3000 Strikeouts!
A Blog By Brett
The southpaw from Dallas, Texas has done. He has achieved baseball immortality! Three thousand career strikeouts! Well done, Mr. Kershaw. What a fantastic career he has had across eighteen major league seasons. We are talking about one of the greatest pitchers ever to play the game of baseball.
Kershaw now enters the exclusive three-thousand-strikeout club in his 18th season. There are only twenty players all-time to be in the 3000 strikeout club…twenty. Only six of those twenty have accomplished this feat in less than 20 seasons, and this now includes Clayton Kershaw.
3000 Strikeout Club
Nolan Ryan: 5,714 strikeouts (27 seasons)
Randy Johnson: 4,875 strikeouts (22 seasons)
Roger Clemens: 4,672 strikeouts (24 seasons)
Steve Carlton: 4,136 strikeouts (24 seasons)
Bert Blyleven: 3,701 strikeouts (22 seasons)
Tom Seaver: 3,640 strikeouts (20 seasons)
Don Sutton: 3,574 strikeouts (23 seasons)
Gaylord Perry: 3,534 strikeouts (22 seasons)
Walter Johnson: 3,515 strikeouts (21 seasons)
Justin Verlander: 3,416 strikeouts (20 seasons)
Max Scherzer: 3,407 strikeouts (18 seasons)
Greg Maddux: 3,371 strikeouts (23 seasons)
Phil Niekro: 3,342 strikeouts (24 seasons)
Fergie Jenkins: 3,192 strikeouts (19 seasons)
Pedro Martinez: 3,154 strikeouts (18 seasons)
Bob Gibson: 3,117 strikeouts (17 seasons)
Curt Schilling: 3,116 strikeouts (20 seasons)
CC Sabathia: 3,093 strikeouts (19 seasons)
John Smoltz: 3,084 strikeouts (21 seasons)
Clayton Kershaw: 2,997 strikeouts (18 seasons)
Kershaw has enjoyed one of the most successful careers in baseball history. Not only does he join the 3000 career strikeout club, but he does so as one of only 24 pitchers to also win an MVP award during their career.
There is not much else Kershaw could do to bolster his resume at this point besides keep adding to the career totals, as he seems to have won every award a pitcher could win at one time or another. Kershaw has enjoyed winning multiple World Series and Cy Young awards, to being an MVP. One of the most dominant players to play the game, and I am just so happy that I have been able to sit back and watch his career unfold for the last eighteen years.
Career Accolades:
1x MVP (2014)
3x CYA (2011, 2013, & 2014)
10x All-Star (2011-2017, 2019, 2022, 2023)
2x World Series Champion (2020 & 2024)
Pitching Triple Crown (2011)
Gold Glove (2011)
3x NL wins leader (2011, 2014, & 2017)
3x NL strikeout leader (2011, 2013, & 2015)
5x NL ERA leader (2011-2014, 2017)