The Baseball Scholar

Strikeouts are the ideal way to get an out. There is no chance for the batter to reach base by error or any other means, short of a dropped third strike. Determining “Greatest” is an inexact science. Some believe that means the player(s) who accumulated the most. Some believe it to be those who produced consistently (think season average). Still, others may believe that means those who throw the hardest. To clarify, I believe it is the players who accumulate more of their outs via strikeout. To qualify, pitchers had to have 1,000 career innings pitched and more than 50% of career appearances had to be starts.

1. Cole Hamels



• Teams: Philadelphia Phillies, Texas Rangers
• Position: LHP

Cole Hamels

# of Seasons	Career Ks	Season High	Avg Season	% Outs/Ks
12	2,227	216	186	31.42%

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2. Justin Verlander



• Teams: Detroit Tigers, Houston Astros
• Position: RHP

Justin Verlander

# of Seasons	Career Ks	Season High	Avg Season	% Outs/Ks
13	2,416	269	186	31.64%

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3. Roger Clemens



• Teams: Boston Red Sox, Toronto Blue Jays, New York Yankees, Houston Astros
• Position: RHP

Roger Clemens

# of Seasons	Career Ks	Season High	Avg Season	% Outs/Ks
24	4,672	292	195	31.67%

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4. Curt Schilling



• Teams: Baltimore Orioles, Houston Astros, Philadelphia Phillies, Arizona Diamondbacks, Boston Red Sox
• Position: RHP

Curt Schilling

# of Seasons	Career Ks	Season High	Avg Season	% Outs/Ks
20	3,116	319	156	31.85%

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5. David Price



• Teams: Tampa Bay Rays, Detroit Tigers, Toronto Blue Jays, Boston Red Sox
• Position: LHP

David Price

# of Seasons	Career Ks	Season High	Avg Season	% Outs/Ks
10	1,676	271	168	31.99%

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6. Hideo Nomo



• Teams: Los Angeles Dodgers, New York Mets, Milwaukee Brewers, Detroit Tigers, Boston Red Sox, Tampa Bay Devil Rays, Kansas City Royals
• Position: RHP

Hideo Nomo

# of Seasons	Career Ks	Season High	Avg Season	% Outs/Ks
12	1,918	236	160	32.35%

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7. Gio Gonzalez



• Teams: Oakland Athletics, Washington Nationals
• Position: LHP

Gio Gonzalez

# of Seasons	Career Ks	Season High	Avg Season	% Outs/Ks
10	1,600	207	160	32.46%

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8. Johan Santana



• Teams: Minnesota Twins, New York Mets
• Position: LHP

Johan Santana

# of Seasons	Career Ks	Season High	Avg Season	% Outs/Ks
12	1,988	265	166	32.71%

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9. Madison Bumgarner



• Teams: San Francisco Giants
• Position: LHP

Madison Bumgarner

# of Seasons	Career Ks	Season High	Avg Season	% Outs/Ks
9	1,482	251	165	32.74%

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10. Sam McDowell



• Teams: Cleveland Indians, San Francisco Giants, New York Yankees, Pittsburgh Pirates
• Position: LHP

Sam McDowell

# of Seasons	Career Ks	Season High	Avg Season	% Outs/Ks
15	2,453	325	164	32.81%

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11. Sandy Koufax



• Teams: Brooklyn / Los Angeles Dodgers
• Position: LHP

Sandy Koufax

# of Seasons	Career Ks	Season High	Avg Season	% Outs/Ks
12	2,396	382	200	34.36%

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12. Tim Lincecum



• Teams: San Francisco Giants, Los Angeles Angels
• Position: RHP

Tim Lincecum

# of Seasons	Career Ks	Season High	Avg Season	% Outs/Ks
10	1,736	265	174	34.40%

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13. Nolan Ryan



• Teams: New York Mets, California Angels, Houston Astros, Texas Rangers
• Position: RHP

Nolan Ryan

# of Seasons	Career Ks	Season High	Avg Season	% Outs/Ks
27	5,714	383	212	35.36%

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14. Clayton Kershaw



• Teams: Los Angeles Dodgers
• Position: LHP

Clayton Kershaw

# of Seasons	Career Ks	Season High	Avg Season	% Outs/Ks
10	2,120	301	212	36.52%

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15. Corey Kluber



• Teams: Cleveland Indians
• Position: RHP

Corey Kluber

# of Seasons	Career Ks	Season High	Avg Season	% Outs/Ks
7	1,201	269	172	36.69%

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16. Pedro Martinez



• Teams: Los Angeles Dodgers, Montreal Expos, Boston Red Sox, New York Mets, Philadelphia Phillies
• Position: RHP

Pedro Martinez

# of Seasons	Career Ks	Season High	Avg Season	% Outs/Ks
18	3,154	313	175	37.18%

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17. Max Scherzer



• Teams: Arizona Diamondbacks, Detroit Tigers, Washington Nationals
• Position: RHP

Max Scherzer

# of Seasons	Career Ks	Season High	Avg Season	% Outs/Ks
10	2,149	284	215	37.76%

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18. Stephen Strasburg



• Teams: Washginton Nationals
• Position: RHP

Stephen Strasburg

# of Seasons	Career Ks	Season High	Avg Season	% Outs/Ks
8	1,288	242	161	39.04%

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19. Chris Sale



• Teams: Chicago White Sox, Boston Red Sox
• Position: LHP

Chris Sale

# of Seasons	Career Ks	Season High	Avg Season	% Outs/Ks
8	1,552	308	194	39.06%

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20. Randy Johnson



• Teams: Montreal Expos, Seattle Mariners, Houston Astros, Arizona Diamondbacks, New York Yankees, San Francisco Giants
• Position: LHP

Randy Johnson

# of Seasons	Career Ks	Season High	Avg Season	% Outs/Ks
22	4,875	372	222	39.3%

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