The 'MLB Playoff strikeout-leaders' quiz

Happy 46th birthday to six-time MLB All-Star, 2007 American League Cy Young winner, 2009 ALCS MVP and World Series champion, CC Sabathia!

Sabathia was selected by Cleveland with the 20th-overall pick in the 1998 MLB Draft out of high school and made his Major League debut on April 8, 2001. He made 33 starts as a rookie, going an impressive 17-5 with a 4.39 ERA and 171 strikeouts in 180 1/3 innings. That durability would become a calling card for Sabathia, who made at least 30 starts in 12 of his 19 Big League seasons. 

He won the American League Cy Young in 2007, leading the A.L. with 241 innings in 34 starts, going the distance four times and fifth complete-game shutout of his career to set himself up as one of the most coveted trade deadline pieces available in 2008. He was traded to the Brewers and, despite being set to make major money that offseason, routinely pitched on short rest to help push Milwaukee into the postseason.

In 2009 he was part of a stellar free agent class for the New York Yankees, joining fellow starter AJ Burnett and first baseman Mark Teixeira to win what is still the franchise’s most recent World Series. After winning it all in 2009, Sabathia remained in the Bronx for the rest of his professional career, which ended after the 2019 campaign. He retired as one of the best left-handed pitchers in baseball history and was inducted into the Pro Baseball Hall of Fame in 2025. 

Which brings us to today’s quiz. Sabathia is one of 22 pitchers in MLB history with at least 100 strikeouts in their playoff career. How many of those pitchers can you name in five minutes?  

Good luck!

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