Clemens career strikeout ratio underwent a steady decline for four seasons in a row: 1990 – 1993. During this time he was just entering the accepted baseball prime. The strike shortened season gave Clemens a boast of well over 1 K per 9. This high level of strikeouts continued through his years in Toronto & the beginning of his pinstripe days.

There could be a number of reasons for this rise in K per 9. The development of his split finger fastball could be the main reason, although according to the James/Neyer Guide to Pitchers, Clemens has always had a forkball/split in his arsenal. Also we can’t discount the maturation of the mental side of pitching as the innings rack up. No accusations here, this is up to the reader to decide.

Below is a graphical representation of his K ratio. Notice the years in the early 90’s up until the spike in 1994 & beyond.