Rays right-hander James Shields reached 200 strikeouts for the second straight season Friday in a 12-1 win over the Blue Jays. Along the way, he recorded the team?s 1,267 strikeout, breaking the American League record set by the 2001 Yankees.
J.P. Arencibia was the victim. It was Shields? third strikeout of the night on his way to finishing the game with nine.
The Rays ended the game with 1,275 strikeouts, leaving them 129 shy of the major league record of 1,404 strikeouts set by the 2003 Cubs. That?s out of reach with just 11 games to go. Still, 1,350 or strikeouts for an AL team could well be considered more impressive that 1,404 from an NL team that got to face pitchers most of the year.
Shields in the Rays? leader at 202 strikeouts for the season, with David Price not too far behind at 188. Rookie Matt Moore has 169 strikeouts in 169 1/3 innings. The bullpen also deserves plenty of credit. Wade Davis has 80 strikeouts in 65 2/3 innings, Joel Peralta has 77 in 61 1/3 innings and Jake McGee has 66 in 50 1/3 innings. Fernando Rodney?s 68 strikeouts in 68 1/3 innings seem almost modest in comparison.
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