No-hitter earns Max Scherzer NL Player of the Week honors

After pitching his first career no-hitter on Saturday, Nationals right-hander Max Scherzer earned National League Player of the Week honors this afternoon.

Scherzer was one strike away from throwing the 24th perfect game in Major League Baseball history when he hit Pirates pinch-hitter Jose Tabata in the left elbow. That was the only baserunner Scherzer allowed as he re-focused and was able to get Josh Harrison to fly out to left to secure the no-hitter.

Scherzer's dominant performance was no surprise, as just six days earlier, the only blemishes on his complete-game shutout of the Brewers were a broken bat bloop single in the seventh inning and a walk in the eighth.

According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Scherzer is the fifth pitcher in the modern era and the first since the Boston Braves' Jim Tobin in 1944 to allow one hit or fewer in back-to-back complete games.

Following his jaw-dropping 16-strikeout performance in Milwaukee last Sunday, Scherzer whiffed 10 Pirates on Saturday. He leads the majors with 123 strikeouts and his 1.76 ERA is the lowest in baseball among starting pitchers.

"My last two starts, this is some of the best baseball I've thrown, best pitching I've done," Scherzer said after the no-hitter. "I just feel like I'm executing all of my pitches. I just continue to keep getting better."

This is the second time Scherzer has earned a Player of the Week award. The first time came when he took the American League honors after striking out 16 in two wins for the Tigers in June 2013.

Scherzer was named NL Pitcher of the Month for May after going 5-1 with a 1.67 ERA.

He is the second Nationals player to win NL Player of the Week this year, joining Bryce Harper, who achieved the accomplishment twice (May 11-17 and May 18-24). Eight other Nats have been honored in the club's history.