Lance Lynn

Michael Lance Lynn (born May 12, 1987) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals of Major League Baseball (MLB).

He has previously played in MLB for the Minnesota Twins, New York Yankees, Texas Rangers, Chicago White Sox, and Los Angeles Dodgers.

Playing college baseball for the Ole Miss Rebels, Lynn set the school's single-season (146) and career (332) pitching strikeout records.

Lynn was born on May 12, 1987, in Indianapolis, Indiana, to Mike and Jenny Lynn.

He was part of the Brownsburg, Indiana, Little League team that appeared in the 1999 Little League World Series.

Brownsburg won the Central Regional Championship in Williamsport, Pennsylvania.

He attended Brownsburg High School, where he played on the baseball team, with teammate Drew Storen, a fellow future major league pitcher.

Lynn earned All-State honors in his sophomore and junior season.

As a junior, Lynn hit .509 with 14 home runs and 46 runs batted in (RBIs).

As a pitcher, he posted a 1.26 earned run average (ERA) and 160 strikeouts (SO) in 100 innings pitched (IP), a 10–3 win–loss record, and three saves.

His team went 36–0 his senior year as they won the 4A state championship.

That year, he hit .400 with 14 home runs; his ERA was 0.71 and record was 16–0.

At Brownsburg, Lynn's cumulative batting totals included a .473 average and 92 RBIs.

His career pitching totals were a 39–4 record, 1.10 ERA, seven saves, and 455 strikeouts in 288 IP.

For the state of Indiana, Lynn was the Gatorade Player of the Year in 2005.

He was also a Louisville Slugger and Electronic Arts All-America selection.

When Lynn played at the Area Code Games, Nike named him an All-Star, and he was teammates with fellow future Ole Miss Rebels baseball signees Evan Button and Scott Van Slyke.

The Seattle Mariners selected Lynn in the sixth round of the June 2005 MLB draft, but he did not sign.

He instead chose to attend the University of Mississippi to play college baseball for the Ole Miss Rebels.

In 2007, he set the Ole Miss single season (146) and career (332) strikeout records.

He was named an All-Southeastern Conference second-team pitcher in 2007 and 2008.

His overall college record was 22–12 with a 3.95 ERA.

The Cardinals selected him in the first round of the 2008 MLB Draft from the University of Mississippi.

The St. Louis Cardinals selected Lynn in the first round, with the 39th overall pick of the 2008 MLB draft.

In 2009, he was named the Cardinals organizational Pitcher of the Year after playing in three levels and totaling a 2.85 earned run average and 124 strikeouts in 148 2⁄3 innings pitched.

In 2009, Lynn was named the Cardinals' organizational Pitcher of the Year after jumping three levels in his first full professional season.

His final start for the year was for the Triple-A Memphis Redbirds of the Pacific Coast League (PCL).

His season totals included a 2.85 ERA and 124 strikeouts in 148 2⁄3 innings.

He led all Cardinals minor league pitchers in strikeouts from 2009–10 (141 in 2010).

Spending the entire 2010 season with Memphis, Lynn also led all Cardinals minor league pitchers in games started (29), was second with 164 innings pitched and 13 wins, and ninth with 7.74 strikeouts per 9 innings pitched (K/9).

In addition, he led the PCL in strikeouts and games started and was second in wins in 2010.

On September 10, 2010, Lynn broke the Redbirds' single-game franchise strikeout record, with 16 against the Oklahoma City RedHawks in a playoff game.

It was also the highest strikeout performance that year in all the minor leagues.

He made his MLB debut on June 2, 2011, was a member of the Cardinals' World Series championship team that year, and a National League All-Star in 2012.

The club added Lynn to the 40 man roster and activated him on June 2, 2011.

On May 27, 2014, Lynn pitched his first MLB career complete game and shutout.

He earned his 500th MLB career strikeout three weeks later, and 50th career win April 15, 2015.

Through 2015, he was the Cardinals' all-time franchise leader in career strikeouts per 9 innings pitched, with 8.7.

After undergoing Tommy John surgery, Lynn missed the entire 2016 season.

On June 18, 2023, he pitched 16 strikeouts against the Seattle Mariners in 7.1 innings, tying the franchise record for most strikeouts by a White Sox pitcher in a single game.