Jason Smith and Mike Harmon discuss why we need to appreciate Clayton Kershaw's next milestone because it may never be done again. Jason brings up how Chris Sale is over 2,500 strikeouts and could be next on the list but will need to pitch for a few more years at a high level. Mike brings up the fact that the other all-time milestones like 3,000 hits and others may also never be done again either.
Jason Smith:
"Clayton Kershaw so far this season, 4-0 and his ERA is 3.00. So maybe not quite the Clayton Kershaw we are used to, the first ballot Hall of Famer, but hey, considering all the injury problems he's had and all the Dodgers starters who can't stay healthy here is with an ERA of 3.00. Three strikeouts away from 3,000, he will probably do it in the first inning against the White Sox, I'm sorry Mike....but a couple of things. First thing is this, I always look at things, my mortality is when I think about something that we're gonna see that you wonder when its going to happen again. So Kershaw, at 37, he's 3 strikeouts away from 3,000. Chris Sale is 36, he's over 2,500 strikeouts. Chris Sale should get to 3,000 in a couple of years. After that, I don't know if that's not the last 3,000 strikeout pitcher I'm going to see in my lifetime. Gerrit Cole is at 2,200 and he's 35. After that no one is even closer. Starting pitchers don't pitch as much as they used to. They don't go deeper into games. We may not see a lot of things in Major League Baseball, the next 3,000 hits, the next 300 win pitcher."
Mike Harmon:
"Yu Darvish is just over 2,000 he's 38. Then you got Gausman, Nola, Sonny Gray, all 1,200 or more later. Nola's only 32 but is he pitching another 8 years to get there? No. Patrick Corbin, Jose Quintana, your guy Degrom. I mean those are the guys next. I mean Zack Wheeler is 35. So that's not happening. You go to wins as you brought up and Kershaw, as dominant as he's been is at 215. Verlander, who's 38 away, is he going to hold up physically? That's another 3 years. He's at 262. Right now, we have to change the metrics. Does it become 2500 hits? Does it become 200 wins? We've been talking about the 200 win threshold in Major League Baseball. If we go to 3,000 hits, Jose Altuve? Yeah maybe. Could Freddie Freeman, as long as he's hitting at 40 years old, like he is 35. Yeah, Now those are all outside chances like this. But with this 3,000 strikeouts, 300 wins with the pitching milestones, we're just never going to see it again. Different world man. We live in a different world."