San Diego Padres: Top Strikeout Pitchers In Team History

Newly minted Hall of Famer Trevor Hoffman comes in at number three.

What can we say that already hasn’t been said about one of the top players in San Diego Padres’ history? After 902 career games and 952 innings, Trevor Hoffman finished his Padres’ career with 1, 029 strikeouts, third most in team history.

Originally drafted as a shortstop by the Cincinnati Reds, Hoffman would become one of the most dominant closing pitchers in the history of Major League Baseball.

Hoffman notched 601 saves in his career which was an MLB record until Mariano Rivera broke that mark in 2011. His 25.8% strikeout rate ranks as the highest among all relief pitchers with at least 1,000 innings under their belt.

In January of 2018, Hoffman received his much-deserved call from the Hall of Fame, joining a class consisting of Jim Thome, Vladimir Guerrero, and Chipper Jones. He becomes the third player to wear a Padres’ hat in the Hall of Fame, along with Tony Gwynn and Dave Winfield.

Hoffman struck out nearly 10 hitters per nine innings while in San Diego, owning a 2.76 ERA across his 16 seasons. The seven-time all-star posted nine seasons of at least 40 saves, using a devastating changeup to put hitters away at the plate.

Major League Baseball may never see another closer as dominant as Trevor Hoffman.