Former San Diego State Aztec Stephen Strasburg became the first Nationals pitcher to record 1,000 career strikeouts on Saturday afternoon.
Strasburg, who also became the second-fastest ever to 100 strikeouts, taking only 855.1 innings to reach triple digits, struck out 10 in 5.1 innings on Saturday.
The former Aztec has had a breakout year in 2016, winning league-high 9 games with zero losses, striking out 90 batters and recording a 2.69 ERA coming into today’s contest.
Strasburg has been in the Nationals record books since his first start, when he recorded a team record 14 strikeouts, which stood as the highest total until Max Scherzer’s 20-strikeout performance on May 11, 2016.
Strasburg was a San Diego State legend, winning the Golden Spikes Award – honoring the best player in college baseball – in 2009, leading the team to its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 1991.
In his final home start, Strasburg recorded a 17-strikeout no-hitter in a 5-0 win over Air Force Academy, a fitting end to a season in which he broke the Mountain West records for ERA and strikeouts in one season.
Strasburg was drafted no. 1 overall by the Nationals in 2009, and will likely be a National for most of his career after signing a 7-year, $175 million extension in May.
