More MLB: Power Rankings | Expert Picks | Latest news & notes | Fantasy news
Mets starting pitcher Bartolo Colon struck out former teammate and current Pirates first baseman Ike Davis for the second out of the top of the sixth inning Wednesday afternoon. It was Colon's seventh strikeout of the game and the 2,000th of his venerable career.
Now, this isn't exactly Albert Pujols hitting his 500th homer. Colon becomes the 70th pitcher in the history of Major League Baseball to hit the 2,000-strikeout mark. Considering the number of pitchers who have toed the rubber in the bigs over the course of history, though, that's a nice feather in Colon's proverbial cap to be among a group of 70. It's still relatively exclusive even if not an elite echelon.
In terms of active pitchers, the 41-year-old Colon unsurprisingly ranks toward the top. Only CC Sabathia (2,437 strikeouts) and A.J. Burnett (2,233) have more career strikeouts. Ryan Dempster (2,075 is also ahead and hasn't officially retired, though he is sitting out this season).
Colon entered Wednesday's start 192-133 with a 3.97 ERA (112 ERA+) and 1.32 WHIP in his career. If he can get to 200 wins, he'll either be the 115th or 116th pitcher to do so (Mark Buehrle has 195 career wins).
