Pitchers in Major League Baseball don’t have an exciting stat to track as hitters do in home runs, but racking up strikeouts is a close second.
Strikeouts and home runs have taken over today’s game with the number of each being higher than ever before.
Before Sunday, there were only 7 active pitchers with 2000 or more strikeouts in their career.
According to MLB on ‘X,’ Yu Darvish became the 8th player to join this list on Sunday.
Yesterday, Yu Darvish became the 8th active player to reach 2,000 career strikeouts!
(MLB x @SageUSAmerica) pic.twitter.com/wG4aKtumZ4
— MLB (@MLB) September 23, 2024
Darvish pitched against the Chicago White Sox on Sunday and threw 6.1 innings allowing 3 hits, 2 earned runs, and had 9 strikeouts.
The 9 strikeouts put him at 2,003 strikeouts for his career which began back in 2012 with the Texas Rangers.
Other big names on this list include Justin Verlander, Max Scherzer, and Clayton Kershaw.
Darvish has battled injuries in the 2024 season, but he has still put up some impressive numbers when healthy.
Through 15 games started, Darvish has a record of 6 wins and 3 losses with a 3.18 earned run average and 74 strikeouts in 76.1 innings pitched.
The San Diego Padres are preparing for a postseason run as they hold a 3-game lead in the National League wild-card race.
As the playoffs come around, the Padres may look to Darvish’s postseason experience to help them along the way.
Darvish has started 11 games in the playoffs and holds a record of 4 wins and 6 losses with a 4.19 earned run average and 54 strikeouts in 58.0 innings pitched.
His next scheduled start is Saturday where he will need a big game to pass Lance Lynn in career strikeouts among active players.
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