Phillies career K/9 rate leaders
K/9 SO rate is one of the many advanced stats that have consumed today’s game, for both pitchers and hitters.
Turning to baseball-reference.com, what follows are the top 10 Phillies pitchers in K/9 rate. In this case, it's career, not single seasons. Yes, there are some surprises on the list.
But first, MLB.com’s glossary explaining the K/9 rate for pitchers:
K/9 rate measures how many strikeouts a pitcher averages for every nine innings pitched. It is determined by dividing his strikeout total by his innings pitched total and multiplying the result by nine.
Because a strikeout is so straightforward -- with no chance of error or bad luck, like on a ball in play -- a pitcher's K/9 rate reveals a lot about his success. However, there are many successful pitchers who get by with lower K/9 rates by inducing a high rate of ground balls and/or soft contact.
K/9 rate tells us a lot, but it's important to note the difference between starters and relievers within the statistic. Because relievers generally pitch for such a short period of time and aren't as concerned about conserving pitches, they can throw with higher intensity for each batter. As a result, relief-pitcher K/9 numbers are generally higher than those of starting pitchers.
Aaron Nola (10.111)
He's the only active Phillies pitcher on the list. Going into 2023, he has 1,380 strikeouts over 1,228 1/3 innings pitched.
Vince Velasquez (9.916)
With the Phillies, he fanned 642 over 582 2/3 innings. The 30-year-old signed with the Pirates following the 2022 season. Yes, he's still active, but not with Phillies.
Cliff Lee (8.844)
Not a surprise. In his five Phillies seasons, the lefty racked up 813 strikeouts in 827 1/3 innings -- highlighted by 238 K's in 232 2/3 innings (2011), 207 K's in 211 innings (2012) and 222 K's in 222 2/3 innings (2013).
Cole Hamels (8.599)
In his 10 Phillies seasons, he amassed 1,844 strikeouts in 1,930 innings. He placed top eight in the NL Cy Young vote four times.
Curt Schilling (8.429)
He pitched nine of his 20 Major League seasons in Philadelphia, racking up 1,554 strikeouts in 1,659 1/3 innings. Schilling was the first in franchise history with back-to-back 300-strikeout seasons (319, 1997; 300, 1998).
Roy Halladay (7.967)
He pitched for 12 years with the Blue Jays and his final four with the Phillies. In that time with Philly, Doc collected 622 strikeouts in 702 2/3 innings. He also recorded a perfect game and a postseason no-hitter as a Phillie and won the AL Cy Young Award in 2003 and the NL Cy in '10.
Robert Person (7.941)
Similar to Halladay, Person was a Phillie for four seasons, striking out 535 in 606 1/3 frames.
Ryan Madson (7.814)
Pitching mostly out of the bullpen, he's the only reliever in the top 10. In nine Phillies seasons, he struck out 547 strikeouts over 630 innings. He made 18 starts out of 491 games pitched with Philadelphia.
Zach Eflin (7.535)
In seven Phillies seasons, he fanned 552 in 659 1/3 innings. The righty signed a free-agent contract with Rays in the offseason.
Brett Myers (7.497)
In eight Phillies seasons, he made 183 starts out of 240 games. In 1,183 2/3 innings, he struck out 986 strikeouts.
Top 10 Strikeout Leaders
Steve Carlton, 3,031
Robin Roberts, 1,871
Cole Hamels, 1,844
Chris Short, 1,585
Curt Schilling, 1,554
Grover Cleveland Alexander, 1,409
Aaron Nola, 1,380
Jim Bunning, 1,197
Curt Simmons, 1,052
Brett Myers, 986