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Phillies' Jesus Luzardo predicted to lead all NL pitchers in key statistic in 2026 originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Coming into the 2026 regular season, the Philadelphia Phillies, with World Series aspirations, made a pair of major commitments to their starting rotation.
Cristopher Sanchez got a nice pay raise, while Jesus Luzardo, entering the final year of club control, got a massive $135 million extension over the next five years.
After such a big deal, Matt Gelb of The Athletic is predicting that Luzardo will lead the entire National League in one key statistic this upcoming season. That statistic is a simple one: Luzardo is predicted to lead the NL in strikeouts.
Jesus Luzardo predicted to lead NL in strikeouts
"Jesus Luzardo leads the National League in strikeouts," Gelb predicts. "He is an ascendant pitcher and, if he nudges towards 200 innings, he'll finish above Logan Webb and Paul Skenes this time to win the league's strikeout crown."
Luzardo finishing with the most strikeouts in the National League, ahead of Logan Webb and Paul Skenes, along with Sanchez and Yoshinobu Yamamoto, would be incredibly impressive.
After signing his $135 million extension, there is clearly a belief in the lefty pitcher from the Phillies organization. But, leading the NL in strikeouts is still a big leap.
More: Jesus Luzardo’s $135 million extension is a steal for Phillies
He had one of the better strikeout rates in all of baseball last year, finishing with a top-five mark of 28.5%. If he can go from his 183.2 inning total to over 200 innings, those extra innings could have his total strikeouts jump up a bit.
Luzardo had 216 strikeouts last season in 32 starts. If it weren't for a very shaky middle of the season, Luzardo might've been able to lead the league in strikeouts and have a decent chance for the NL Cy Young award.
There's plenty of reason to be optimistic with Luzardo entering the 2026 MLB season, and the Phillies lefty, coming off a $135 million extension, is predicted by Gelb to prove that optimism right with an NL-leading strikeout season.
More MLB news:
- Blue Jays sign Joe Mantiply to minor league contract
- Dodgers’ Roki Sasaki will return to rotation, not bullpen according Dave Roberts
- Alex Cora announces Caleb Durbin is Red Sox starting third baseman
- Joey Wentz is out for the season with a torn ACL for the Braves
- Reds’ Hunter Greene to be out until July amid brutal injury news
- Braves predicted to trade Bryce Elder for Lars Nootbaar
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