WASHINGTON -- Max Scherzer’s ERA dipped to a head-turning 0.47 in his last three starts after a scoreless six-inning outing against the Cardinals on Wednesday.

Scherzer fanned nine and allowed four hits, one walk and one hit batter off 109 pitches (71 strikes) in the Nats’ 1-0 win. Just one start after passing Cy Young for 22nd all-time in strikeouts, he moved ahead of Mike Mussina for No. 21 on the list with 2,817. He trails Mickey Lolich (2,832) at No. 20.

“His tenacity [stood out],” manager Dave Martinez said. 

To capture the full picture of the pitching line and milestone, the early stages of Scherzer’s outing tell the story of his battle in the series finale. He faced six batters in the first inning alone, including hitting Cardinals leadoff man Tommy Edman and loading the bases -- a jam he escaped with back-to-back strikeouts. By the end of the second frame he had thrown 49 pitches.

Unfettered, he and catcher Alex Avila -- his former teammate from their days on the Tigers -- regrouped and Scherzer settled down to throw a dominant outing. 

“That goes to show you what Max can do,” Martinez said. “It was a rough go early. He settled down, he got us through six innings. A really good performance -- the game was 1-0 -- but that’s Max.” 

Scherzer’s effectiveness with strikeouts was key, as the blustery wind at Nationals Park blew so hard that Martinez’s pregame advice was: “Don’t take your eye off the ball. The ball can blow anywhere.” Scherzer felt the effects of the cold temperatures early on, and realized after the second inning that he was jumping toward home plate, which was impacting his mechanics and location. He made the necessary adjustments to prevent a pitching slipup.

“Just don’t get beat on a solo home run,” Scherzer said. “Keep that ball in the ballpark, wind’s blowing in, be aggressive at these guys and don’t make a mistake.”

During Scherzer’s recent three-start stretch -- which includes April 11 vs. the Dodgers and Friday vs. the D-backs -- he has held opponents to a .138 batting average and recorded 24 strikeouts to four walks. The right-hander has thrown 17 consecutive scoreless frames (dating back to the third inning in L.A.), for the third-longest active streak in baseball.

“I’m always priding myself on throwing strike one and working ahead in the count,” Scherzer said. “When I can do that, that’s when I pitch my best. I still feel I can throw strike one better -- I don’t think that my strike-one percentages is where I really want them. But even when I’m behind the count, I’m able to throw any pitch at any time and throw it for a strike. That keeps you out of hitters really being able to do damage against you, and try to prevent the walk.”

Scherzer got run support from Avila, who drove in the lone run of the game with an RBI double in the second. It was Avila’s first two-double game since May 18, 2017.

“Alex grinds,” Scherzer said. “The previous start, he missed a couple shots when I was on the mound, and today he was able to get ahold of one and do some damage, and that really helped.”