The 10 Most Strikeouts By A Starter In MLB Opening Day History

We are now just days away from the 126th Major League Baseball season. The number is actually 151 if you choose to count since the formation of the National League in 1876. But either way, it has all the feels of a new baseball season in the air.

While Opening Day is technically just one of 162 opportunities at victory for a team in the regular season, it represents so much more than that for fans and players. It represents new hope, new memories to be made, and perhaps, even, new records.

Yesterday, we took a look at which MLB players have the most multi-home performances on MLB Opening Day. Today, we’re giving the pitchers some love.

The 10 Most Impressive Opening Day Starts According To Strikeouts

On one hand, Opening Day is the perfect time for a pitcher to impress against hitters who are still getting into the swing of things when it comes to getting their timing and feel down at the plate.

But most pitchers aren’t fully stretched out when it comes to their velocity and pitch total by the start of the season, making racking up strikeouts far more difficult than it may be later on in the season.

These 10 (nine, technically) starters, however, defied the odds by putting up eye-popping strikeout totals on the first day of the MLB season.

T6) Lon Warneke – 13  Strikeouts – 1934 Chicago Cubs

Five players are tied at the bottom of our list with 13 strikeouts, the first of whom did so all the way back in 1934.

Lon Warneke was a five-time All-Star for the Chicago Cubs who broke out in 1932, leading the NL in wins and leading all of Major League Baseball in ERA as the Cubs reached the World Series, where they fell to the New York Yankees.

In 1934, Warneke became the first of just two starters all-time to strike out 12 or more batters and pitch a shutout when he came within two outs of a no-hitter against the Cincinnati Reds.

Warneke would eventually get his well-deserved no-hitter in 1941 while pitching for the St. Louis Cardinals against those same Cincinnati Reds.

T6) Bob Gibson – 13 Strikeouts – 1967 St. Louis Cardinals

Speaking of legendary St. Louis Cardinals pitchers, the next name on our list is first-ballot Hall of Famer Bob Gibson.

Gibson, a nine-time All-Star and two-time Cy Young Award winner, fanned 13 in the first of nine consecutive Opening Day starts for St. Louis. Gibson began the season by dominating the San Francisco Giants, striking out the first five batters he faced, including Willie Mays and Willie McCovey. He outdueled fellow Hall of Famer Juan Marichal and became the second of two pitchers with a 12-plus strikeout shutout in an opener.

Oh, and he ended the season just as strongly, winning the World Series MVP against the Boston Red Sox.

T6) Dave McNally – 13 Strikeouts – 1970 Baltimore Orioles

Unsurprisingly, this list is absolutely stacked with multiple-time All-Stars and Hall of Famers.

The next on the list is Baltimore Orioles ace Dave McNally, who help the Birds to three consecutive AL pennants from 1969-71,

In 1970, he began the season by baffling Cleveland, to the tune of 13 strikeouts, including 11 of the final 14 batters he faced. The win was the first of an AL-high 24 on the season, and the Orioles finished the year by claiming victory in the World Series over the Cincinnati Reds.

T6) J.R. Richard – 13 Strikeouts – 1980 Houston Astros

By the late 1970s and into 1980, J.R. Richard had established himself as one of the best pitchers in baseball before an untimely stroke cut his career short.

The 6-foot-8-inch tall right-hander struck out more than 300 batters in both 1978 and 1979, leading the National League both years.

He began the 1980 season against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the Houston Astrodome by striking out eight of the first 10 batters. He ultimately pitched eight innings and struck out 13 en route to the victory.

Houston went on to win the NL West over Los Angeles, but Richard’s tragic stroke, which came shortly after starting the All-Star Game, kept him from returning.

T6) MacKenzie Gore – 13 Strikeouts – 2025 Washington Nationals

MacKenzie Gore, who is now a member of the Texas Rangers after an offseason trade, came to Washington as one of the centerpieces in San Diego’s trade to acquire Juan Soto.

While it took him a little while to find his footing, the lanky lefty found his way in 2025, making his first career All-Star Game appearance.

His strong 2025 campaign began on Opening Day with a dazzling performance against the Phillies that saw him strike out 13, give up just one hit, and face the minimum through six innings of work before being pulled.

Unfortunately for Gore, Phillies’ ace Zack Wheeler was nearly as good, and Philadelphia pulled out a 7-3 victory in extra innings.

T2) Don Drysdale – 14 Strikeouts – 1960 Los Angeles Dodgers

Three pitchers find themselves tied for second on our list with 14 strikeouts. The first among them is yet another Hall of Famer, Los Angeles Dodgers’ ace Don Drysdale

Drysdale, a nine-time All-Star and three-time World Series winner, made seven Opening Day starts for the franchise.

After leading the National League in strikeouts in 1959, he began his defense of that crown with a jaw-dropping performance against the Chicago Cubs.

Drysdale allowed two runs in the third inning, but was otherwise incredible, striking out 14 and picking up the victory in an 11-inning complete game. Oh, and by the way, he also hit a triple in the contest.

T2) Randy Johnson – 14 Strikeouts – 1993 AND 1996 Seattle Mariners

Full disclosure here, despite being a Philadelphia Phillies fan my entire life, Randy Johnson is my favorite pitcher of all time, and it’s because of things like this.

The Big Unit finds himself tied for second on this list with 14 strikeouts on Opening Day, a feat which he accomplished two separate times!

The first-ballot Hall of Famer, who ranks second all-time in strikeouts behind only Nolan Ryan, first struck out 14 batters on Opening Day in 1993 against the defending champion Toronto Blue Jays, who, by the way, would go on to defend that title in 1993 (breaking my heart in the process).

He then matched the feat in 1996 when he surrendered a two-run homer to Frank Thomas in the first inning, but settled in to baffle the Chicago White Sox across seven innings in Seattle’s Kingdome. The Mariners won both games.

T2) Shane Bieber – 14 Strikeouts – 2020 Cleveland Guardians

Sadly, injuries have robbed us of what may well have been a Hall-of-Fame-caliber career for Shane Bieber.

But in 2020, he was at the peak of his powers. After making his first All-Star Game appearance in 2019, Bieber earned the nod on Opening Day in 2020 for Cleveland against the Royals.

He went on to dominate, using a high-velocity fastball and a devastating knuckle-curve to strike out 14 Kansas City hitters over six scoreless innings.

Bieber went on to win the AL Triple Crown that season, leading the league in wins, strikeouts, and ERA en route to an AL Cy Young Award in the COVID-shortened season.

1) Camilo Pascual – 15 Strikeouts – 1960 Washington Senators

Cuban star Camilo Pascual made seven All-Star Game appearances across his 15 MLB seasons and led the American League in strikeouts three separate times, making him one of the more notable snubs for the Baseball Hall of Fame.

The 5-foot-11 righty also holds a now 65-year-old record for the most strikeouts in an Opening Day start.

Pascual ripped through the Boston Red Sox lineup in what was the final Opening Day for the original Washington Senators before they moved to Minnesota. He struck out 15, which is tied for his career high, in a dominant 10-1 victory over the Red Sox. Boston’s lone run of the game came on a solo home run by Ted Williams, who was beginning the final season of his legendary career.