Justin Verlander earned his Major League-leading 12th win on Saturday, moving up the all-time strikeout list in the process.

He's pitching at an elite level after missing nearly two years due to Tommy John surgery.

"I've said the word 'perspective' here a lot, and I don't take it for granted," he said. "I think in the past I took a lot of things for granted, my health and some success when I was young, certainly not since I've been an Astro. But I think age and going through some stuff has a way to help you grow up and realize some real positives that maybe you wouldn't have taken a moment to realize before."

Verlander, who leads all active players in strikeouts, now has 3,121 in his career, moving him past Curt Schilling (3,116) and Bob Gibson (3,117) into 14th place on the all-time list.