Atlanta Braves' Lefty Sits Behind Only Seattle Mariners' Legend in Baseball History
The Atlanta Braves put together another solid victory on Wednesday night, beating the San Francisco Giants by a score of 3-1. With the win, the Braves are now 47-37 on the season. San Francisco fell to 42-45 on the year with the loss.
On the mound, left-hander Chris Sale continued his solid streak this season. The Braves' lefty went 6.0 innings, striking out nine and giving up just one run. He is now 11-3 on the year and has posted a 2.71 ERA. In his first healthy season since 2018, he's been a true difference maker for Atlanta, who is trying to overcome the loss of ace Spencer Strider.
According to Paul Hembokides of ESPN, Sale is also chasing some baseball history that is currently held by Seattle Mariners' legend Randy Johnson.
Chris Sale averages 7.9 strikeouts per start for his career, 2nd-most in MLB history.
Behind only Randy Johnson (8.0).
Chris Sale averages 7.9 strikeouts per start for his career, 2nd-most in MLB history.
— Paul Hembekides (Hembo) (@PaulHembo) July 4, 2024
Behind only Randy Johnson (8.0). pic.twitter.com/T19NrZO19A
The 35-year-old Sale is 131-83 for his career and owns a 3.08 ERA. He's in his 14th year with the Chicago White Sox, Boston Red Sox and Braves. He did not pitch in the 2020 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery and barely pitched in 2021 or 2022.
As for Johnson, he's one of the best pitchers in baseball history.
He pitched for 22 seasons with the Montreal Expos, Mariners, Houston Astros, Arizona Diamondbacks, San Francisco Giants and Yankees.
With the Mariners, he led the American League in shutouts in 1994 (4), and led the American League in complete games (9) that same year. He led the AL in ERA with a 2.48 in 1995, a year in which he went 18-2 on the mound and took the M's to the playoffs.
Furthermore, he led all of baseball in strikeouts each year from 1993-1995. He was a four-time All-Star with the Mariners who also won the Cy Young in 1995. He won 303 total games.
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