ATLANTA -- John Smoltz was all about the strikeout on Sunday afternoon. He set the Braves' all-time franchise strikeout record in the third inning against the Diamondbacks, and then kept extending it.
Smoltz recorded a season-high 12 strikeouts during his eight innings of Atlanta's 6-2 win at Turner Field. His fifth strikeout gave him 2,913 for his career, breaking the franchise mark of Phil Niekro, who played with the Braves in Milwaukee and Atlanta.
"It doesn't get more impressive than that," Braves manager Bobby Cox said.
Eleven of Smoltz's 12 strikeouts were of the swinging variety, as only Justin Upton went down looking. Every Arizona starter struck out at least once, except for right fielder Jeff Salazar, who was 1-for-4 with a double.
Smoltz wanted a chance to extend the record even further, but Cox removed him from the game after eight innings and 122 pitches, the most Smoltz has thrown in a game since April.
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Smoltz sets new Braves strikeout record
Smoltz sets new Braves strikeout record
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