:''This list is for pitchers. For career strikeouts by batters, see List of Major League Baseball career strikeouts by batters leaders The following list is of the top 100

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...

s in career

strikeout In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It usually means that the batter is out. A strikeout is a statistic recorded for both pitchers and batters, and is deno ...

s in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

. In

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

, a strikeout occurs when the batter receives three strikes during his time

at bat In baseball, an at bat (AB) or time at bat is a batter's turn batting against a pitcher. An at bat is different from a plate appearance. A batter is credited with a plate appearance regardless of what happens during their turn at bat, but a batt ...

. Strikeouts are associated with dominance on the part of the pitcher and failure on the part of the batter.

Nolan Ryan Lynn Nolan Ryan Jr. (born January 31, 1947), nicknamed "the Ryan Express", is an American former professional baseball pitcher and sports executive. Over a record 27-year playing career in Major League Baseball (MLB) spanning four decades, Ryan ...

has the most career strikeouts in Major League Baseball. During a record 27-year career, he struck out 5,714 batters. The

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...

record is held by

Roger Clemens William Roger Clemens (born August 4, 1962), nicknamed "Rocket", is an American former professional baseball pitcher who played 24 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), primarily with the Boston Red Sox. Clemens was one of the most dominant pi ...

(4,167 strikeouts), while in the

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...

, the record is 4,000 by

Steve Carlton Steven Norman Carlton (born December 22, 1944) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a left-handed pitcher for six different teams from 1965 to 1988, most notably as a member of the Philadelphi ...

. The parentheses adjacent to an active player denote the number of strikeouts in the current season.

List

A player is considered "inactive" if he has not played baseball for one year or has announced his retirement. *Stats updated as of the end of the 2022 season. MLB.com – Career Leaders for Strikeouts
/ref> Active pitchers with 1,700 strikeouts (stats updated through 2022): *

Gerrit Cole Gerrit Alan Cole (born September 8, 1990) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played for the Pittsburgh Pirates and Houston Astros. Cole played for the baseball team ...

(1,930) - 257 in 2022 *

Johnny Cueto Johnny Cueto Ortiz (; born February 15, 1986) is a Dominican professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cincinnati Reds, Kansas City Royals, San Francisco Giants and Chicago White Sox ...

(1,812) - 102 in 2022 *

Yu Darvish , more commonly known as Yu Darvish (ダルビッシュ有), is a Japanese professional baseball pitcher for the San Diego Padres of Major League Baseball (MLB). Darvish has also played in MLB for the Texas Rangers, Los Angeles Dodgers, and ...

(1,788) - 197 in 2022 *

Aníbal Sánchez Aníbal Alejandro Sánchez Jr. (; born February 27, 1984) is a Venezuelan professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He made his Major League Baseball (MLB) debut in 2006 with the Florida Marlins and has also played for the Detroit Tiger ...

(1,774) - 48 in 2022 *

Ian Kennedy Ian Patrick Kennedy (born December 19, 1984) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees, Arizona Diamondbacks, San Diego Padres, Kansas City Royals, ...

(1,754) - 44 in 2022 *

Stephen Strasburg Stephen James Strasburg (; born July 20, 1988) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Washington Nationals of Major League Baseball (MLB). Strasburg was selected by Washington with the first overall pick in the 2009 Major League ...

(1,723) - 5 in 2022 *

Lance Lynn Michael Lance Lynn (born May 12, 1987) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Chicago White Sox of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played for the St. Louis Cardinals, Minnesota Twins, New York Yankees, and Texas Rangers. ...

(1,715) - 124 in 2022

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Top 100 Major League Baseball Strikeout Pitchers Strikeout p Baseball records

Striking out the side In baseball, striking out the side refers to when a pitcher strikes out all the batters he faces in the defensive half- inning in which he pitches. There is no official statistic in regard to this accomplishment, though it is often noted by comment ...

List of Major

List

See also

References