The Best Strikeout Artists From The MLB

When your baseball team is in a pinch, a strikeout can make all the difference. Unfortunately, this isn't something that you can ever guarantee, although there are ways to potentially increase the odds of it happening. It all depends on who's pitching and just how good they are at throwing the ball.

Major League Baseball has seen plenty of talented strikeout artists come and go over the years. Who stands out as the best of the best, though? The best strikeout artists from the MLB today certainly deserve to be called the GOATs of their time for plenty of reasons.

Félix Bautista has wasted little time racking up strikeouts since his debut

In 2022, Félix Bautista made his MLB debut as part of the Baltimore Orioles. Since then, he's achieved nearly 197 strikeouts and already earned one All-Star appearance. The fact that he's already managed this in less than 18 months of playing professionally is an excellent sign of what the future holds. 2023 has been a particularly great year for the pitcher, thanks to fastballs of over 100 mph and averaging more than two strikeouts per inning. In May 2023, he also managed five strikeouts in one game, setting a new record for himself and proving he has what it takes to be considered one of the best. Who knows what he could be achieving in just a few more years.

Jacob DeGrom's switch to pitching was a career-defining decision

On several different occasions, Jacob DeGrom has led the NL in strikeouts, which already proves he's something of a talent in this area. Although he wasn't a pitcher when he first started playing baseball, this all changed when he began attending Stetson University, and we're glad about that. After all, he's managed over 1,600 strikeouts throughout his Major League Baseball career, achieving 45 of them in 2023. It would have been more, but he's currently out with a torn UCL for which he requires Tommy John surgery. Unfortunately, this is the second time he's required this surgery, so it's hard to know what his future in baseball will look like. 

Gerrit Cole has one of the best fastballs the MLB has ever seen

Gerrit Cole is no stranger to strikeouts in the MLB. After all, he made his debut over a decade ago now and has reportedly recorded 2,100 strikeouts since then. Many of these have come since he joined the New York Yankees in 2018, with his fastball really helping that total to keep racking up. Unfortunately, 2023 hasn't been his best year, which seems to be the problem with the Yankees in general. So, he probably doesn't quite seem like GOAT material compared to some of these other guys at the moment. However, given what he's achieved and the potential to turn things around, we still feel that Cole deserves a mention.

Shohei Ohtani surpassed Babe Ruth with an impressive strikeout record

It's devastating that Shohei Ohtani won't be able to pitch again this season following a UCL tear. Hopefully, he'll be able to come back in 2024 better than ever, which could admittedly be quite a difficult undertaking. After all, he's really proven himself to be one of the best strikeout artists around. Since joining Major League Baseball, he's managed 606 strikeouts. In May 2023, he scored his 502nd career pitching strikeout, which meant he overtook the all-time strikeout record holder, Babe Ruth. Ohtani's also set the record for most pitching strikeouts by a player with 100 home runs, proving he really is an exceptionally skilled player. We really hope this injury doesn't affect that moving forward.

Spencer Strider has been breaking records after just a few years

Spencer Strider only made his MLB debut in 2021. However, he's already blown fans away with his incredible strikeout ability. In 2023, he set some incredible records, becoming the fastest pitcher to ever attain 100 and 200 strikeouts in a single season. He did this in 61.0 and 123.1 innings, respectively, with the latter beating a record he'd set in 2022. As of the time of writing, he has 429 career strikeouts, and he's looking to become the first starting pitcher to finish a full season with a strikeout rate above 40%. If he keeps this momentum up, it's hard to imagine anyone getting the better of him.

All of these men have really impressed us with what they've achieved on the baseball diamond. While some of them may have question marks over their futures, others hold the promise of getting even better. Regardless, though, as things stand right now, there aren't many people who can really compare to these exceptional pitchers.