Steve Carlton, a renowned left-handed pitcher, made history on April 29, 1981, by becoming the sixth pitcher in Major League Baseball to achieve 3,000 career strikeouts. The milestone was reached during a game against the Montreal Expos at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia. Carlton needed only four minutes and 16 pitches to accomplish this feat, striking out Tim Raines, Jerry Manuel, and Tim Wallach consecutively.
“The only thing that saved fans who got there a little late was having the two national anthems,” Pete Rose remarked to the Philadelphia Daily News.
With this achievement, Carlton joined an elite group of pitchers including Walter Johnson, Gaylord Perry, Nolan Ryan, Bob Gibson, and Tom Seaver. Notably, he was the first left-hander among them. Since then, the club has expanded to include 19 members with Clayton Kershaw on the verge of becoming the 20th.
Carlton expressed his excitement about reaching this milestone in a postgame interview with Phillies broadcaster Richie Ashburn: “I really wanted to strike out three guys… When I went down to warm up, I was excited.” However, Carlton refrained from speaking further with the media.
His manager and teammates shared their admiration for his accomplishment. Phillies closer Tug McGraw told The Philadelphia Inquirer: “It makes a tremendous statement about the guy because it covers so many areas.” Manager Dallas Green noted Carlton’s determination: “He wanted to get it over with… But I think this was one milestone he was very pleased to achieve.”
Shortstop Larry Bowa highlighted Carlton’s unique status as a left-hander: “The only left-hander in the history of baseball to do it… Just to say you’ve been a part of this… everybody on this team is going to be proud of that one day.”
Del Unser added his perspective: “I think it will be good to look back and say I was there.”
Tim Wallach recalled his experience facing Carlton that day. Although he believed the decisive pitch was off the plate, he later recounted: “After, a fan in right field hollered at me… That’s not a bad claim to fame for a guy who’s only been here 60 days.”
