Mets’ Justin Verlander became the 21st pitcher in MLB history to win against all 30 teams

if New York Mets beginning Justin Verlander Retired before the start of the 2023 MLB season, he will be a Hall of Famer. At this point in his career, Verlander, 40, is still relevant for two reasons: to win another ring and to cross a few other milestones from his long list of career accomplishments.

Verlander managed to do the latter during Wednesday’s match against Cincinnati Reds. Verlander threw 7 solid innings against Cincinnati, giving up just 1 run in 2 innings. He made 2 catches, struck out 7 and snapped winning 2-1.

With this win, he became a Verlander Twenty-first pitcher in MLB history To count victory over all 30 teams. before verlander, Gerrit Cole He was the last archer to accomplish this feat. He achieved a win against his former club, The Houston Astrosin 2021. That game Cole has at least one win against all 30 MLB teams.

Being a member of this exclusive club does not guarantee that a player will be made Hall of Fame. Verlander is a lock and Cole gets his way well, but other players who have done it, like Javier Vazquez and Woody Williams, haven’t come close.

However, the list does mention some positive things about the shooter. In order to get a win against all 30 MLB teams, you have to be very fit and you have to have longevity. For example, Vazquez has pitched 14 seasons in the majors. He had a better-than-league average ERA in 8 of those seasons.

Cole and Verlander make up 2 of the 4 active pitchers to beat all 30 MLB teams. Kansas City Royals beginning Zack Grenk He did so in 2019. Greinke was with the Houston Astros at the time, and had a win over the Royals to accomplish the feat. Max Scherzer He is the only other active pitcher with wins against every MLB team. He managed it in 2016, when he beat his former club, Detroit Tigers.

There is an obvious reason why the list of players who have accomplished this feat is filled with newer names. MLB expanded to 30 teams in 1998. The first player to beat all 30 MLB teams was Al Leiter, who began his MLB career in 1987. Free agency was decades old at that point, but it’s a necessary piece of the puzzle here.

There is a list of pitchers who have wins against all 30 MLB teams in the coming years. MLB introduced a balanced schedule in 2023, which enables teams to play more games outside of their divisions.