As kids, we all looked at leaderboards.  We watched as Barry Bonds passed Hank Aaron for the home run record.  We also watched Rickey Henderson take the stolen base crown from Lou Brock.  We saw Nolan Ryan take over the record for pitching strikeouts, and the list goes on.  One record, however, that we don’t really talk about is strikeouts by batters.  In the modern era, the strikeout is way more common, so the leaderboard is much more fluid, and several present-day players have a shot at being in the top ten.  Interestingly, several of them have ties to the Yankees, so let’s check them out …

The What Could Have Been Yankee 

One of two Hall of Fame players (at least at the present time) was traded before he got to wear pinstripes.  He went on to accumulate a .284/.377/.509 slash line with a 52.6 WAR.  The “Crime Dog”, Fred McGriff, also struck out 1,882 times in his career.   McGriff was drafted in 1981 by the Yankees, but before he could get his feet wet, in 1982, he was traded along with Dave Collins and Mike Morgan to the Blue Jays for Dale Murray and Tom Dodd.  Alas, his amazing career and his high number of strikeouts were for other teams.

He Played for the Yankees?

The Yankees love trade deadline moves, especially to pick up players for the pennant chase.  In 2018, the Yankees picked up Andrew McCutchen from the Pirates.  He provided a 0.9 WAR and a .253/.421/.471 slash line, but in a short period of time.  He also recorded 22 of his 1,893 career strikeouts in pinstripes.  Now McCutchen still hasn’t retired, so he has a good chance to move up this list, and maybe even reach 2,000 strikeouts!

A Player with a Great Nickname

There are always some players that you just like, whether they play for your team or another team.  Curtis Granderson was always one for me, and he had a great nickname, “The Grandyman.”  In 2009, the Tigers shipped him to the Yankees in a big three-team deal (which involved a soon-to-be Hall of Fame pitcher).  The Grandyman was excellent in his four years in the Bronx, accumulating a 14.9 WAR with a .245/.335/.495 slash line.  He also accumulated 549 of his 1,916 career strikeouts as a Yankee.  

We Forget about Steroids when it means a Championship!

Another trade deadline pick, and one likely made to block another team.  In 2000, at the end of his career, Jose Canseco joined the Yankees.  He had a league average of .243/.365/.432 slash line in his half a season of limited action, but the Yankees won the World Series that year!  The father of steroids, therefore, is fondly remembered because of the title and not because of 37 of his career 1,942 strikeouts in pinstripes!

The Player We Brought Back

I actually wrote a piece about how much I didn’t like re-signing him.  One thing I do like, though, is being able to follow him up the career strikeout leaderboard.  Paul Goldschmidt is already in the top 10 with 1,979 strikeouts, and he is sure to cross 2,000 this year (he had 100 last year).  A borderline Hall of Famer with a career 63.8 WAR and a career .288/.378/.504 slash line, but I prefer to watch him climb this leaderboard, because I am weird.  

Perhaps the Future All-Time Strike Out Leader

The current Home Run leader is not surprisingly the current leader in strikeouts (welcome to the new age of baseball).  Giancarlo Stanton has been climbing the leaderboard for years thanks to 919 of his 2,059 career strikeouts in Pinstripes.   Another borderline Hall of Fame player with a 46.8 career WAR, a .258/.345/.528 slash line and a great shot at 500 strike outs.  He also only needs 539 strikeouts to top the leaderboard, which is possible if he can be somewhat healthy.

The GOAT

I asked a friend of mine who is older who he thought held the record for strikeouts.  He got the answer pretty quickly, Reggie Jackson.  Reggie was a strikeout hero before they even became popular.  He led the league in strikeouts five times, but never with the Yankees, even though he had 573 of his career 2,597 strikeouts in the Bronx.  A Hall of Fame player with a 74 career WAR, a .262/.356/.490 slash line, and a truly memorable player.  He is also the GOAT in strikeouts!