On Wednesday night, when the Los Angeles Dodgers take on the Chicago White Sox, Clayton Kershaw will chase one of baseball’s most hallowed marks: 3,000 career strikeouts. Needing just three punch‑outs against the Sox, the veteran left‑hander can become only the 20th pitcher in MLB history—and just the fourth southpaw—to reach the plateau.
Kershaw, in his 18th season with the Dodgers, inched to 2,997 strikeouts last Thursday in Denver, fanning five Rockies batters. With four consecutive starts of at least three strikeouts—including a seven‑K outing on June 8 vs. St. Louis—he has positioned himself for a milestone celebration on the mound.
Clayton Kershaw Poised to Join Exclusive 3,000‑Strikeout Club, 1st Los Angeles Dodgers Pitcher In Elite Club
Support Our Fight To End Fall Weddings
Kershaw already passed Don Sutton to take the franchise record 300 K’s ago. To join the 3,000‑K club, Kershaw will need three batters to swing and miss or look on strikes. His likely adversaries, the White Sox, have struck out 707 times this season (eighth‑most in MLB), averaging nearly nine Ks per game—a favorable split for a pitcher renowned for freezing hitters with a late‑breaking slider.
No small feat in modern baseball: only 18 complete games have been thrown league‑wide so far in 2025, compared with 82 in 2008, Kershaw’s rookie year. Fewer innings per starter and tighter pitch counts make 3,000 strikeouts increasingly rare. Future Hall of Famers Justin Verlander (3,468) and Max Scherzer (3,412) remain the only active members, and Kershaw will join them on that short list.
Beyond the milestone, a successful outing would also bring Kershaw to 216 career wins, passing Scherzer for second among actives, trailing only Verlander’s 262.
As the Dodgers, currently leading the NL West, lean on Kershaw’s veteran steadiness amid a season of pitching injuries, Wednesday’s game promises both historic drama and a showcase of enduring craft. With wife Ellen and their four children in the stands—and a fifth on the way—the Texas‑born lefty looks to stamp his legacy with three more strikeouts and a place in baseball immortality.
Subscribe to LAFB Network’s YouTube Channel
| Nolan Ryan+ (27) | 5714 | 5386.0 |
| Randy Johnson+ (22) | 4875 | 4135.1 |
| Roger Clemens (24) | 4672 | 4916.2 |
| Steve Carlton+ (24) | 4136 | 5217.2 |
| Bert Blyleven+ (22) | 3701 | 4970.0 |
| Tom Seaver+ (20) | 3640 | 4783.0 |
| Don Sutton+ (23) | 3574 | 5282.1 |
| Gaylord Perry+ (22) | 3534 | 5350.0 |
| Walter Johnson+ (21) | 3509 | 5914.1 |
| Justin Verlander (20, 42) | 3471 | 3483.1 |
| Max Scherzer (18, 40) | 3419 | 2891.0 |
| Greg Maddux+ (23) | 3371 | 5008.1 |
| Phil Niekro+ (24) | 3342 | 5404.0 |
| Fergie Jenkins+ (19) | 3192 | 4500.2 |
| Pedro Martinez+ (18) | 3154 | 2827.1 |
| Bob Gibson+ (17) | 3117 | 3884.1 |
| Curt Schilling (20) | 3116 | 3261.0 |
| CC Sabathia+ (19) | 3093 | 3577.1 |
| John Smoltz+ (21) | 3084 | 3473.0 |
| Clayton Kershaw (18, 37) | 2997 | 2781.1 |