SAN FRANCISCO -- Justin Verlander entered Sunday three strikeouts shy of becoming only the 10th pitcher in Major League history to reach 3,500 career K’s.

The 42-year-old right-hander didn’t wait around to achieve the milestone, as he joined the exclusive club after striking out the side in the first inning of the Giants’ series finale against the Nationals at Oracle Park.

Verlander struck out James Wood swinging on a 95.3 mph fastball to lead off the inning and then got CJ Abrams to go down swinging on a down-and-in slider. He gave up back-to-back, two-out hits to Josh Bell and Paul DeJong, but he managed to leave both runners stranded by striking out Nathaniel Lowe swinging on another 95.2 mph heater to end the inning.

The Giants celebrated Verlander’s rare feat by flashing a cong

See Full Page