On April 22, 1970, New York Mets pitcher Tom Seaver struck out the final 10 batters he faced in a 2-1 victory over the San Diego Padres. The 10 consecutive strikeouts are a Major League record. In a dominant performance, Seaver yielded only 2 hits, while striking out 19 Padres. The lone run allowed was a solo homerun by leftfielder Al Ferrara, who later became the final strikeout victim of the evening.
Seaver's consecutive strikeout streak broke the record held by Hall of Famer Mickey Welch. On August 28, 1884, Welch, then of the New York Gothams, fanned the first 9 Philadelphia Quakers he faced. Welch's feat, however, still stands as the record for most consecutive strikeouts to start a game.
The modern-day record (post-1900) for consecutive strikeouts to begin a game is held by the Houston Astros' Jim Deshaies on September 23, 1986. He fanned the first 9 batters he faced on his way to his first Major League complete game, a 4-0 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers. His streak ended when pinch hitter Larry See, batting for pitcher Dennis Powell, grounded out to second. Oddly, See recorded only 43 Major League at-bats in his career, recording 8 hits, but tallying 15 strikeouts.
Less than 4 months prior to Deshaies' strikeout skein, Chicago White Sox pitcher Joe Cowley punched out the first 7 Texas Rangers facing him on May 28, 1986. Cowley's streak ended when catcher Orlando Mercado flied out to left field. Unfortunately for Cowley, he didn't share the same fate as Deshaies. Cowley lasted less than 5 innings, allowed 6 runs on 6 hits, and took the loss. Nonetheless, his performance still stands as the American League record for most consecutive strikeouts to begin a game.
The American League record for most consecutive strikeouts in a game is 8 held by 4 pitchers. On July 9, 1972, Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan fanned 8 consecutive Boston Red Sox on his way to a 3-0 victory. After allowing a single to Carl Yastrzemski in the first inning, Ryan K'd the next 8 batters, before Yastrzemski flied out to left field to begin the fourth inning. Ryan is widely credited with matching his feat a year later on July 15, 1973. Play-by-play accounts do not bear this out, however. Play-by-play accounts do indicate he struck out 8 consecutive Milwaukee Brewers on August 7, 1973, beginning with George Scott in the 2nd inning, and ending when Dave May grounded out in the 5th inning. Ryan struck out 13 batters that night and recorded a 6-5 win.
On May 4, 1981, Ron Davis of the New York Yankees also struck out 8 consecutive batters. Pitching in relief of Gene Nelson, Davis began the 7th inning by forcing the California Angels' Don Baylor to pop out to the second baseman. Davis then struck out the final 8 batters he faced to record the save in the 4-2 victory.
This feat was again matched on April 29, 1986, by the Boston Red Sox Roger Clemens. In a dominating 3-1 victory over the Seattle Mariners, Clemens struck out 8 consecutive batters, on his way to a Major League record 20 Ks. Interestingly, Clemens' streak ended when his former college teammate Spike Owen flied out to centerfield to end the 6th inning. Four months later, Owen was traded to the Red Sox and played a large role in helping them to the World Series.
The final member of the American League 8-consecutive-strikeout club is the Kansas City Royals' Blake Stein. His streak began on June 17, 2001 when, following a 2-out walk to Geoff Jenkins, Stein struck out Richie Sexson. After striking out the next 7 batters, Stein's streak ended when Jenkins lined out to the second baseman. Unfortunately, Stein could not sustain his mastery of the Milwaukee Brewers, allowing 4 runs in less than 6 innings, ultimately losing 5-2.
Since Deshaies fanned 9 consecutive Dodgers in a game in 1986, no other pitcher had struck out more than 8 batters in a row until Ricky Nolasco of the Florida Marlins struck out 9 consecutive Atlanta Braves on September 30, 2009. Nolasco struck out the side in the third, fourth, and fifth innings. Adam Laroche broke the streak in the sixth with a double. Following a Matt Diaz walk, Nolasco struck out the next two batters he faced. The Braves, desperate to stay in the playoff hunt, were befuddled all night by Nolasco, who struck out 16 Atlanta batters on the way to a 5-4 Marlins victory. Nolasco had 12 strikeouts through five innings, and 15 Ks through 7 innings. But with 2 outs in the eighth inning and a runner on first, Nolasco was removed for reliever Dan Meyer, who coaxed Chipper Jones to fly out to centerfield. After scoring 2 runs in the ninth, the Braves had a chance to win with the bases loaded and 2 outs. But Diaz was picked off of third base following a pitch that squirted away from the catcher. Diaz initially broke toward the plate but hesitated before being thrown out at third base trying to get back to the bag.
Since Seaver's record skein in 1970, only 2 Major League pitchers have struck out at least 9 consecutive batters in a game, and both were unable to strike out the tenth batter to match Seaver's feat. But part of the beauty of baseball is that this record can be equaled or broken on any afternoon a Major League game is played.