The Washington Nationals have been mired in turmoil over the past week, but Max Scherzer made the pain of dugout brawls and clubhouse chaos disappear Saturday night as he twirled his second no-hitter of the season in a 2-0 win over the New York Mets at Citi Field.
Scherzer's the first pitcher to record two no-hitters in the regular season since 1973. The last, according to B/R Insights, is Nolan Ryan.
Washington's ace recorded 17 strikeouts in the win—seven more than he notched in his no-hit effort on June 20 against the Pittsburgh Pirates. The 17 strikeouts also tied Ryan for the most in a no-hitter since 1900, per ESPN Stats & Info, which also noted Scherzer is the only player in MLB history to throw two no-hitters without allowing a walk (a hit-by-pitch and an error kept the outings from being perfect games).
Scherzer's repertoire was simply devastating Saturday night, just as it has been all season. He mixed pitch speeds beautifully and sat down Mets batters with filthy changeups, fastballs and sliders.
"To throw a no-hitter, sometimes it takes a little luck," Scherzer said, per the Associated Press (via ESPN). "I was able to execute all four of my pitches whether I was behind in the count or ahead in the count."
The timing of the historic outing, though, was a bit strange. Not only have the Nationals been in a full-blown tailspin thanks to a 37-44 record that spanned July through September, but Scherzer's second half also hasn't been nearly as prolific as his first half.
Scherzer posted a 2.11 ERA and held opposing batters to a .185 average prior to the All-Star break, but a 6.43 ERA in a winless August coincided with Washington's nosedive in the standings.
ESPN's David Schoenfield analyzed Scherzer's second-half struggles and related them to the Nationals' lost season: "Hitters hit a lot of home runs off Scherzer's fastball, and his mediocre second half became a part of the Nationals' meltdown, along with the injuries, the bullpen, the manager, the rest of the rotation, the clubhouse chemistry and maybe the Thomas Jefferson mascot."
However, the National League Cy Young candidate has been dominant on the road all season. Entering Saturday night, Scherzer was 8-5 with a 2.38 ERA as a visitor. By comparison, the 31-year-old is 5-7 with a 3.44 ERA at Nationals Park.
Washington's 2015 campaign undeniably disappointed relative to expectations, but Scherzer's ability to consistently blow away opposing batters stands out as one of the most impressive individual feats by any MLB player this year.
Washington isn't going anywhere this postseason, and Scherzer isn't likely to make any real Cy Young noise with Zack Greinke and Jake Arrieta continuously wowing.
However, there's no denying, bad second half or not, that Scherzer was a bright spot for the Nationals this year. Scherzer showed he's the ace Washington wanted when it signed him this past offseason.
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