You can now find the Los Angeles Dodgers’ star pitcher Clayton Kershaw in the 3,000 strikeout club. The two-time World Series champion struck out the Chicago White Sox’s Vinny Capra in the sixth inning on Wednesday night. He then etched himself among the 20 pitchers in MLB history to tally 3,000 career strikeouts. Kershaw now happens to be the fourth lefty to hit that milestone.

The other three? It’s Steve Carlton, CC Sabathia, and Randy Johnson. All of them are Hall of Famers, and soon you can expect Kershaw to join their company at Cooperstown.

Kershaw has won the hearts of Dodgerland and beyond. Entering Wednesday, he had a stellar 2.51 ERA across 2,781 innings. For nearly five times, he has led the league with his ERA.

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After his Wednesday outing, the baseball world and beyond are celebrating his milestone all over social media. His wife, Ellen, and the kids also chimed in with a beautiful message.

Ellen, beaming with pride, was sitting in front of a wall lined with her husband’s photos as she stated, “Clayton, Congratulations. 3000 strikeouts. That’s incredible. I remember your very first strikeout and we were freaking out, screaming in our same section like always…cheering you on. And the craziest thing about these strikeouts is they’ve always meant something so much bigger than just a strikeout.”

She explained the “Kershaw Challenge”—the reason why his strikeouts are more than just a number.

Kershaw has donated money for each strikeout he has ever done. With 3,000 strikeouts to his name, he has impacted thousands of lives in the process. “The difference and impact that has been made with every strikeout is just incredible. So we are so proud of you. We’ve been cheering our hearts out for you for so long.” Ellen added.

His daughter, Cali, was just as proud. She shared, “Dad, I’m so proud of you… you’ve been throwing strikeouts since before I was born. I’m so happy you’ve gotten to 3000 strikeouts.” Further, his sons, wearing Dodgers’ caps and jerseys, added, “Dad, you’re the best. You can throw really hard and you have a really nasty curveball. And I’ve never seen anything like it.”

Kershaw’s signature curveball, which leaves hitters confused, is something his sons admire too.

Let’s take a look at the evolution of Clayton Kershaw’s pitching

The three-time Cy Young Winner made his MLB debut in the same year when the technology of pitch tracking came to life. It was 2008, and for a 20-year-old new to the big leagues, it wasn’t easy to catch up. Back then, he used to throw 94 mph fastballs and 74 mph curveballs.

The league was already impressed with his numbers. Catcher Russell Martin agreed, too. For Kershaw’s stuff, Martin was head over heels, to say the least.

Coming to his strikeouts, for which he has been the talk of the town, his first one came against Cardinals outfielder Skip Schumaker. It was a stunning 95 mph pitch.

Throughout his initial years, He used the fastball as his weapon until his sliders came into the picture. He was new back then and lacked command. But now, when he takes over the mound, he is a threat to the hitters. All of his 42 sliders of Wednesday night (his 438th start) had that command he once lacked in his early days.

This time, more than the Dodgers’ 5-4 win, it was Kershaw’s personal milestone that had the league talking.