ATLANTA — A swing and miss on a 1-2 pitch in the bottom of the ninth inning Saturday evening put Aroldis Chapman in baseball’s record book. The punchout marked 1,197 of his career, allowing him to pass Billy Wagner for the most strikeouts by a left-handed reliever in MLB history.

Since making his big league debut on August 31, 2010, Chapman has served as one of the game’s most feared relievers. A seven-time All-Star and two-time World Series champion, Chapman arrived in Pittsburgh this offseason on the cusp of completing his climb toward becoming the southpaw reliever strikeout king. Derek Shelton spoke heading into this weekend’s series about the excitement he and the club feel to be a part of Chapman's historic feat.

“It speaks to how good Aroldis has been over the course of his career,” Shelton said. “With Billy Wagner, we’re talking about one of the best relievers of all time. The fact that he’s entering that category there, it’s very cool.” 

Chapman admitted that he too had the record on his mind heading into Saturday’s contest. The veteran southpaw entered his 35th outing on the season looking to finally eclipse the milestone. 

“I went out there knowing I was two strikeouts away from either tying the record or going ahead,” Chapman said with major league coach Stephen Morales translating. “And yes, I was trying to get that today."

Chapman’s outing ironically got off to an unsettling start, as the 36-year-old lefty twisted his ankle while attempting to field a ground ball hit up the middle by Matt Olson. After being briefly examined by the training staff, Chapman was able to remain the ballgame. After walking Austin Riley to put the game’s go-ahead run on first base, Chapman tied Wagner’s record by getting Travis d’Arnaud to whiff on a 2-2 slider over the middle of the plate.

The Braves then called upon catcher Sean Murphy to pinch hit against Chapman with the game on the line. Murphy did his best to make Chapman work, fouling off four pitches after falling behind 1-2 in the count. A 102.9 mph sinker was the pitch that finished the job, getting Murphy to swing and miss, putting Chapman in the history books. 

"It feels good,” Chapman said. “It's just the result of hard work through the years. You put in hard work every day, and thank God that I can achieve a milestone like this."

Chapman now boasts the fifth most strikeouts of any reliever in MLB history, trailing only Hoyt Wilhelm (1,363), Goose Gossage (1,340), Craig Kimbrell (1,236) and Lee Smith (1,225). 

Noah Hiles: nhiles@post-gazette.com and @_NoahHiles on X

First Published: June 30, 2024, 1:12 a.m.