PHOENIX — Arizona Diamondbacks starter Zac Gallen did not understand why manager Torey Lovullo was congratulating him after the first inning of Monday’s game against the San Francisco Giants.
Gallen knew coming into the game that he was close to 1,000 strikeouts as a member of the Diamondbacks, but he was locked into game mode at that point.
“I went into the start obviously not thinking about that, and I walked by him after the first inning. He’s like, ‘Congratulations, that’s awesome.’ And I’m like, ‘For a 1-2-3 inning?'” Gallen told Arizona Sports’ Burns & Gambo.
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Once he completed his six innings of one-run ball in a victory, Gallen was able to sit back and appreciate the milestone. Only three Diamondbacks pitchers had ever reached 1,000 strikeouts in the uniform, the other two being Randy Johnson and Brandon Webb. Those are Cy Young winners, members of the Diamondbacks’ Mount Rushmore.
Sharing an exclusive club with Johnson and Webb took Gallen aback.
“It’s really cool for me,” Gallen said. “When I got here seven or so years ago, I didn’t doubt my abilities to be able to hopefully one day be mentioned in some categories alongside the likes of guys like that. But for it to actually come to fruition takes a lot of hard work, takes a lot of luck, honestly, to be able to stay healthy for that long and be able to perform at a level to be able to do that.
“So for me to be in that conversation with them when it comes to career strikeouts here is really humbling.”
Zac Gallen with his 1,000th strikeout as a member of the #Dbacks.
He becomes the 3rd pitcher in franchise history to hit that mark, joining Randy Johnson (2,077) and Brandon Webb (1,065). pic.twitter.com/sijTQkDjze
— Jesse Borek (@JesseABorek) September 16, 2025
Gallen joked that he would have to pitch 20 more seasons in Arizona to catch Johnson, who punched out an absurd 2,077 batters. Webb struck out 1,065 hitters, and Gallen is 60 away from Webb. He won’t be able to catch him this year, but he would next season if he sticks around.
Gallen will be a free agent this winter after coming over in a 2019 trade from the Miami Marlins.
It was not always clear that he would finish this season in Arizona, either.
The right-hander has successfully turned his campaign around from disaster through July to excellent since the start of August. The D-backs did not receive a trade offer they felt was worth moving on from Gallen at the deadline, and he has rewarded the organization by being a catalyst for Arizona’s march into postseason contention.
Command improvements and catching more breaks were two explanations Gallen gave.
Gallen had a 5.60 ERA through July, and the team was 9-13 in those games. His ERA is 2.68 since, and the Diamondbacks are 6-3 in his nine starts.
“He’s a human being and he had a bit of a grinding couple of months, but I knew before the season was over he’d find his stride,” Lovullo said. “So credit to him for attacking the zone, switching up sequencing, believing in himself, getting on a nice roll.
“He’s been an elite pitcher before. We felt very strongly he was gonna find that again. And the fact that he’s doing it right now … it’s nice to know he is gonna be leading the way for us.”
What has changed for Zac Gallen?
The Diamondbacks' starter explains his season turnaround to @BurnsAndGambo.
The Clubhouse Call-In is brought to you by Dog Haus. pic.twitter.com/VFP2PV3sek
— Arizona Sports (@AZSports) September 17, 2025
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