The Canadian 1,000-strikeout club has its newest member.
On Saturday, Nick Pivetta joined Fergie Jenkins, Ryan Dempster, Erik Bedard, John Hiller and Kirk McCaskill as the only Canadian hurlers to punch out 1,000 hitters in the major leagues.
Pivetta, making his 158th career start, needed three strikeouts for the Boston Red Sox against the Milwaukee Brewers to join what was a five-man club.
The Victoria, B.C. native reached the 1,000 mark in the third inning, getting catcher William Contreras to swing at a perfectly placed sweeper on the outside corner.
Pitching in his eighth MLB season, Pivetta has found his form this season with the Red Sox, entering play Saturday with a 3.04 ERA and 30 strikeouts over 26.2 innings. The 31-year-old has missed time this year after going on the 15-day injured list at the beginning of April.
Pivetta was originally selected by the Washington Nationals in the fourth round of the 2013 MLB Draft out of New Mexico Junior College. He was later traded to the Philadelphia Phillies in 2015 and made his debut with the club in 2017.
He pitched in Philadelphia for parts of four seasons before being dealt to the Red Sox in August 2020.
Next up for Pivetta will be to continue climbing the ladder. After leaving his start in the fourth inning against Milwaukee at exactly 1,000 strikeouts, he trails McCaskill by three and Hiller by 36.
Jenkins is the all-time Canadian leader with 3,192, leading second-place Dempster by over 1,100 batters sent down.
Ladner, B.C.'s James Paxton might be next up to join the club, as the Los Angeles Dodgers southpaw is just 40 strikeouts away from 1,000. He has 28 strikeouts in 49 innings this season.
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