Sale Records Double-Digit Strikeouts in 8th Consecutive Start

Chicago White Sox pitcher Chris Sale fanned 12 batters during Tuesday's 2-1 win over the St. Louis Cardinals, joining Pedro Martinez (1999) as the only players since 1900 to record 10 or more strikeouts in eight consecutive starts, per Elias Sports Bureau (h/t ESPN Stats & Info).

Sale gave up just one run on six hits and a walk over eight innings on Tuesday night, allowing the White Sox to eventually win in the 11th inning on a solo home run from catcher Tyler Flowers.

The lefty owns a modest 3-3 record during his eight-game streak, but his ERA (1.80), WHIP (0.77) and strikeout-to-walk ratio (97-9) have all been Cy Young-caliber.

Sale's 75 strikeouts in June (six starts) were the second-most any pitcher has ever recorded during the month, trailing only Nolan Ryan's 87 (seven starts) from 1977, per MLB Stat of the Day.

Sale has already broken his own franchise single-season record for double-digit strikeout games, with his nine besting last season's mark of eight.

He also had a recent streak of five straight games with 12 or more strikeouts, tying the all-time record held by Martinez (1999) and Randy Johnson (1998), per Elias Sports Bureau (h/t ESPN Stats & Info).

Scheduled to face the Baltimore Orioles on Sunday, Sale will try to become the first pitcher to record nine consecutive starts with double-digit strikeouts in the same season.

Martinez reached double digits in his final eight starts of 1999 and first two starts of 2000, but he also made a one-inning relief appearance on the final day of the '99 campaign.