Sabathia Strikes Out 3,000th Batter

C.C. Sabathia of the New York Yankees has become the 17th pitcher in MLB history to strike out 3,000 batters. Sabathia fanned former battery mate John Ryan Murphy in the second inning of this evening's game against the Arizona Diamondbacks. Among left-handed pitchers, only Steve Carlton and Randy Johnson have more strikeouts than Sabathia. The burly lefty, who is in the final year of his MLB career, has just punched his ticket to Cooperstown.

Sabathia becomes the first pitcher to reach 3,000 strikeouts since John Smoltz did it with the Atlanta Braves in 2008. As of this writing, there are five pitchers who have a viable shot at 3,000 strikeouts - Justin Verlander (2,759) Max Scherzer (2,503) Zack Greinke (2,478) Cole Hamels (2,445) and Clayton Kershaw (2,296). Seattle Mariners pitcher Felix Hernandez has 2,488 strikeouts but he is not the strikeout threat he was once was. Verlander will likely get to 3,000 in 2020 with his former Tigers teammate Scherzer getting there in 2021. It is worth noting that Greinke is Sabathia's mound opponent tonight. But beyond this group this mark might not be attained for many, many years to come so Sabathia's achievement tonight is quite special. 

This won't be Sabathia's only landmark in his last big league season. He is three wins away from 250 for his career. However, despite his historic achievement, the Yankees are currently down 2-1 in the fifth inning (UPDATE: The Yankees lost 3-1). But win or lose, Sabathia deserves all the congratulations in the world.