Baseball Strikeout Pitchers - Ranking the Best of the 1960s

Baseball fans have always worshipped the pitchers who could string together strikeouts. And as hitters have become less concerned with making contact and more concerned with reaching the fences (since home runs always pay better than singles), strikeout ratios have increased steadily with each decade throughout the 20th Century.

The biggest jump in the average number of strikeouts per 9 innings pitched among all major league pitchers came in the 1960s, when the average per 9 innings rose to 5.47 strikeouts (compared to 4.38 in the 1950s). That's more than a strikeout per 9 innings better than the previous decade ... the most dramatic increase in strikeouts for any decade.

This increase in strikeouts was no doubt partly due to the raised pitching mound and enlarged strike zone that prevailed during mot of the 1960s. But it is just as likely that the increase was due to the talent of 1960s pitchers ... the same pitchers who posted the lowest collective major league ERA (3.60) of any decade since the introduction of the "lively ball" in 1920.

The simply 1960s featured more great strikeout pitchers than any other baseball decade. The 10 best are recognized in thi ranking. These are the pitchers who faced some of the best power hitters in major league baseball history, and sent more hitters back to the dugout with their bats dragging than any generation of pitchers before them.

Half of the pitchers making up this list (Koufax, Gibson, Bunning, Drysdale, Marichal) are currently in the Hall of Fame. Had they played more years for better teams, McDowell, Lolich and Tiant might well have had a shot at Cooperstown. They were certainly among the most dominant pitchers of the decade.

1. Sandy Koufax -The Dodger left-hander averaged 9.51 strikeouts per 9 innings pitched during the 1960s, the highest average among all major league starting pitchers that decade. Koufax finished 3rd in total strikeouts for the decade with 1,910, though he retired after the 1966 season.

2. Bob Gibson - With a total of 2,071, Bob Gibson recorded more strikeouts during the 1960s than any other pitcher. He averaged 7.62 strikeouts per 9 innings, and struck out 200 or more batters in a season 7 times during the 1960s, though leading the National League only once (1968).

3. Sam McDowell - The American League's most proficient strikeout pitcher during the 1960s, "Sudden" Sam finished just behind Koufax in average strikeouts per 9 innings with 9.41. He led the American League in strikeouts 4 times during the 1960s (as well as in 1970), and topped 300 strikeouts in a season twice.

4. Jim Maloney - The Cincinnati Reds right-hander struck out 1,585 batters during the 1960s, averaging 7.92 strikeouts per 9 innings. From 1963 through 1966, Maloney averaged 234 strikeouts per season while winning 78 games for the Reds.

5. Bob Veale - This 6-6 southpaw won 100 games for the Pittsburgh Pirates during the 1960s, including 18 victories in 1964, the year he led the National League in strikeouts with 250. Veale struck out 1,428 batters during the 1960s, an average of 7.98 strikeouts per 9 innings (3rd best among all pitchers).

6. Jim Bunning - Bunning is the only member of this list to lead each league in strikeouts. As a member of the Detroit Tigers, he topped the American League with 201 in both 1959 and 1960, and with the Philadelphia Phillies, Bunning led the National League in strikeouts with 253 in 1967.

7. Don Drysdale - Drysdale led the National League in strikeouts twice in the 1960s (as well as in 1959), totaling 1,910 strikeouts for the decade to tie for 3rd with teammate Sandy Koufax. Drysdale averaged 6.54 strikeouts per 9 innings during the 1960s.

8. Mickey Lolich - The all-time strikeout leader for the Detroit Tigers, Lolich registered a total of 1,336 strikeouts during the 1960s, averaging 7.87 strikeouts per 9 innings for the decade. In 1969, he averaged 8.69 strikeouts per 9 innings.

9. Juan Marichal - The pitcher with the most victories during the 1960s (191), Juan Marichal struck out 200 or more batters in a season 6 times. He amassed a total of 1,840 strikeouts for the decade, with an average of 6.49 strikeouts per 9 innings.

10. Luis Tiant - Though he pitched only 6 seasons during the 1960s, all with the Cleveland Indians , Tiant struck out 1,041 batters during the decade. He averaged 7.81 strikeouts per 9 innings, the 6th highest average among major league pitchers in the 1960s.



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