JULY 17, 1974 — St. Louis Cardinals ace Bob Gibson took the mound at Busch Stadium against the Cincinnati Reds with 28,743 fans eager to witness history. Gibson started the day with 2,999 career strikeouts and recorded number 3,000 as he got César Geronimo to chase a high fastball for strike three in the top of the second. Bob became just the second pitcher in MLB history to reach this milestone, the inaugural member being Hall-of-Famer Walter Johnson, who reached the mark in July of 1923.