San Diego's Jeremiah Estrada is unhittable right now. We know that because people keep swinging and they are literally not hitting his pitches. Estrada has struck out an MLB record 13 consecutive batters over his last three appearances. All 13 have gone down swinging. His latest secured a Padres win over the Miami Marlins on Tuesday night.
Estrada faced three batters and threw 12 pitches. Ten of them were strikes. Only five those were even fouled off.
Jeremiah Estrada strikes out his 13th consecutive batter. 🤯 pic.twitter.com/CeGGE7XSqb
After the game fans gave the 25-year old a standing ovation while teammates gave him a Gatorade bath. Which is good because he's been downright filthy this season.
While Estrada's on a particularly hot heater right now, he's been cooking all year. He has made 12 total appearances, striking out 28 batters in 16.1 innings. He's given up just five hits and one run and only one person has a hit off him in his last five appearances.
13 straight strikeouts is unreal, an MLB record…but having every single one of those batters go down swinging is a once in a lifetime event. Utter dominance from Jeremiah Estrada pic.twitter.com/CoV8WIhazF
So where did Estrada come from? The California native was drafted by the Chicago Cubs in 2017 and spent seven unremarkable seasons in the Cubs' system before the Padres claimed him off waivers back in November. San Diego has been rewarded with one of the best relievers in baseball and he's not even costing them a million dollars. Even if he doesn't record another out this season they got their money's worth.
STEPHEN DOUGLAS