MILWAUKEE — In a period marked by a surge in strikeouts, it has become challenging for pitching statistics to truly distinguish themselves. Nevertheless, the performance delivered by Brewers’ starting pitcher Jacob Misiorowski and his relief colleagues on Opening Day would undoubtedly be considered an astonishing achievement in any era.
Despite conceding an initial home run to the White Sox’s Chase Meidroth – a first for an Opening Day leadoff batter in Chicago’s extensive history – Misiorowski, alongside four Milwaukee relief pitchers, overwhelmed the ChiSox with a torrent of 20 strikeouts, culminating in a dominant 14-2 Brewers blowout on Thursday.
By the time Misiorowski exited after five innings, that solitary home run was his only conceded run, and he had recorded an impressive 11 strikeouts – three more than any previous Brewers hurler had ever amassed on an Opening Day.
Evidently, the homer did not discompose him.
“Opening days are quite chaotic,” Misiorowski remarked. “There’s a multitude of events unfolding, a gigantic flag unfurled across the outfield. So it’s captivating to witness, but it brings a lot of sentiment, trying to comprehend it all. Giving up the home run is regrettable, but the batter connected with it. Therefore, such is life, one must move onward.”
Misiorowski’s formidable, triple-digit fastball had brought him recognition upon his arrival in the major leagues last season, garnering such widespread praise that he was chosen for the National League All-Star squad despite having only five professional starts to his name. He wasn’t consistently clocking 100 miles per hour on Opening Day – it’s still early in the season for that – but his pitching repertoire proved sufficiently effective to induce 24 swing-and-misses from Chicago’s batters.
“A significant amount of [vertical movement],” Misiorowski affirmed. “It was quite effective today.”
The contest was largely decided when Misiorowski departed, yet Andy Ashby, Grant Anderson, DL Hall, and Jake Woodford continued to deliver strikeouts – contributing nine more over the final four frames. Both Hall and Woodford managed to strike out all three batters in their respective single innings.
When Woodford fanned Chicago’s pinch-hitter Derek Hill to conclude the game, it brought the Brewers’ total to a neat, round 20. This established a new team record and equaled the MLB benchmark for the highest number of team strikeouts in a nine-inning game. It marks the inaugural occasion a team has achieved such a high tally in nine innings on an Opening Day.
Quite a commendable beginning. The strikeouts occurred with such rapidity and intensity that the majority of the assembled media during the game remained unaware that the Brewers had matched such a distinguished milestone. Manager Pat Murphy then speculated as much after inquiring about the MLB record.
“I don’t perceive it as historically significant in terms of how [Misiorowski] pitched the ball,” Murphy stated. “I believe he executed some truly excellent things, and he demonstrated growth, which is what we anticipate. I think that is the aspect to be enthusiastic about.”
According to the Brewers, ten teams had previously struck out 20 batters in a nine-inning game. The most recent instance was the Mets, who accomplished this feat against Pittsburgh on September 18, 2022.