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His career is on a Cooperstown trajectory, but that's not what fuels Max Scherzer

We caught up with the Parkway Central grad about his World Series win, Hall of Fame trajectory and what he's been up to with baseball shut down

St. Louis has produced some great baseball players over the years.

From Yogi Berra and Joe Garagiola to Ryan Howard, David Freese and Mark Buehrle, the gateway city isn't short on baseball talent.

But by the time he's done, there's a decent shot that Washington Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer could claim to be the best of any player to come from the St. Louis area.

He's still just 35, is a 7-time all-star, has won 3 Cy Young Awards, a World Series and will likely reach 3,000 strikeouts in the 2021 season.

Only 18 players have reached 3,000 strikeouts for their career. Only four of them aren't in the hall of fame, yet (Clemens, Schilling, Sabathia and Verlander).

But it's not the individual stats that fuel the ultra-competitive Scherzer.

We caught up with the pitcher during the ongoing baseball shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic. And as you might expect, for Scherzer, it's all about getting back to where his team was at the end of 2019.

"I'm not motivated by that (getting to the hall of fame). That's not why I wake up in the morning," Scherzer said. "I wake up in the morning because I want to win a World Series for my teammates."

Scherzer told 5 On Your Side sports director Frank Cusumano he really started to feel himself develop into a Major League player while pitching at the University of Missouri.

"That was when I really kind of put things together. Being able to mechanically clean up myself to where I was a little bit more consistent," Scherzer said. "And I got into a full weightlifting program year round and baseball was the only sport."

With baseball on pause, Scherzer's title defense will have to wait.

For now, he's at home with his wife and two young daughters, enjoying some extended family time baseball players aren't usually afforded.

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