Maybe his niche is 383 strikeouts. (Age 19-223d, Nolan Ryan Ryan pitched in 27 games, with 20 starts. In his eight seasons with the Angels, Ryan was 138121, a 3.07 ERA, 1.29 WHIP, with 1,302 walks and 2,416 strikeouts in 2181 innings over 288 starts and 156 complete games.[20]. We have tools and resources that can help you use sports data. Ryan pitched into the fifth inning in a game the Rangers won 12-10 with a nine-run rally in the eighth inning. He had 12 complete games, with 211 strikeouts and 61 walks. In the same game, he would set his career highs for walks (matched one other time) and strikeouts (matched three other times). [7], Ryan played baseball for Coach Jim Watson at Alvin High School for all of his high school career. [58] The Astros won the 2017 World Series and won the 2019 American League pennant. Although the Angels were a sub-.500 team and remained one for much of his time there, Ryan managed to post some winning records, notably 1916 in 1972, 2116 in 1973 and 2216 in 1974 (the 22 wins tied what remains the Angels franchise record, set by Clyde Wright in 1970). (And how about crazy stuff like this: Pitching 13 innings against the Boston Red Sox on June 14, 1974, Ryan threw 235 pitches, striking out 19, walki Continue Reading Sponsored by PureCare Knee Protector Sullivan, 1999); Kings of the Hill (with Mickey Herskowitz, 1992), about contemporary pitchers; and instructional books Pitching and Hitting (with Joe Torre and Joel Cohen, 1977), and Nolan Ryan's Pitcher's Bible (with Tom House, 1991). Nolan Ryan played for 4 teams; the New York Mets, California Angels, Houston Astros and Texas Rangers. "Check his bat!" Ryan is the all-time leader in no-hitters with seven, three more than any other pitcher. Absolutely. The California Angels retired the number 30 on June 16, 1992; the Texas Rangers retired his number 34 on September 15, 1996; and the Houston Astros retired number 34 on September 29, 1996. [76], The Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame inducted Ryan in 2010. No pitcher has ever thrown 200 pitches in a game. Ryan did change, however, at least a little. To not give that max effort on every pitch would be cheating the gift. How many teams has Nolan Ryan played for? No Gavin Lux -- big problem. Sept. 22, 1993. Oscar turned to me and said, 'A good night tonight is 0-for-4 and don't get hit in the head. I suspect half of those guys he struck out swung rather than get hit. Or write about sports? [68] He chose to wear a Rangers cap for his HOF plaque to reflect his Texas heritage, as well as the fact that his 300th win, 5000th strikeout, and last two no-hitters came as a Ranger. With perfect location, it doesn't matter how bad your stuff is. He said his fastball doesn't really have that late movement like some other pitchers and that his curveball "isn't overpowering. ", "In baseball-filled life, Ruth Ryan proud of kids", "As Texas Watches, Ryan Hurls Against Ryan", "Nolan Ryan's wife used to catch for him when he was in the majors", "Want to live like a rock star? Bryce Harper, Ken Griffey Jr. and Bo Jackson lived up to their billing. pitch Nolan Ryan had 5,714 career strikeouts ( Top 1,000 ), more than any other pitcher in history (839 more than #2 all-time, Randy Johnson ). Join our linker program. Didn't lift. [27][28], During a September 7, 1974 game against the Chicago White Sox at Anaheim Stadium, Ryan became the first Major League pitcher to have his pitch speed measured during a game. On May 1, 1991, he pitched perhaps the best game of his career: His seventh no-hitter, against a playoff-bound Blue Jays team, striking out 16 with two walks. So maybe you could call him stubborn. Harold Reynolds led off the game with base hit, the only one of the game for Seattle. If you're going to lose, it's sure great to strike out 380 guys. [16] Ryan has credited his time with Seaver and the Mets with turning him from just a flamethrower into a pitcher. When he was traded to the Angels in 1971, he discovered a weight room at Anaheim Stadium -- although he said it wasn't for the Angels, as baseball players were discouraged at the time from lifting weights (he wasn't sure who was it built for, suggesting maybe a soccer team). On Friday, Will Sammon of The Athletic released an article about Justin Verlander and how he is still attempting to introduce a changeup into his repertoire at this stage of his career. Ryan briefly attempted to pitch past the injury, and he threw one additional pitch after tearing his ligament. When he signed his record-setting free-agent deal with the Astros for the 1980 season, making him the first player to earn a $1 million annual salary, his career record was just 167-159. In 1987, Ryan led the major leagues in both ERA (2.76) and strikeouts (270) at the age of 40, but finished 816 as the result of extremely poor run support; the Astros scored a total of 27 runs in his 16 lossesan average of 1.69 runs per game. WebNolan Ryan is NOT a top 10 pitcher of all-time. He embarrasses you. The SPORTS REFERENCE and STATHEAD trademarks are owned exclusively by Sports Reference LLC. '", James' summary best explains the adulation of Ryan late in his career. Ryan threw out the ceremonial first pitch before Game 3 of the 2005 World Series between the Astros and the White Sox, the first World Series game played in Texas. Nolan Ryan Stats, News, Bio | ESPN Find out more. Within five seasons, the season was only Ryan's fourth-highest strikeout total. (On April 19, 1968, he had struck out three batters on nine pitches in the second inning of a 21 win over the St.Louis Cardinals, becoming the eighth National League pitcher and the 14th pitcher in Major League history to accomplish the feat. [78] They have three children: Reid, Reese, and Wendy. Nolan Ryan's record 108 mph fastball. Ryans stat line from that game: 13 innings, 19 strikeouts, 10 walks, 58 batters us. Ryan also played various positions besides pitcher. As far as Nolan Ryan no-hitters would go, it was a relatively pedestrian effort, with a mere 12 strikeouts, although there were no hard-hit balls against the Angels right-hander until the final couple of innings, including the final out, a fly ball to the warning track. Nolan Ryan career postseason stats See trending Best batter-pitcher matchups of all he asked. Planes, trains and parachutes? What were the defining traits of Nolan Ryan That started a careerlong dedication to conditioning. His catcher for that first pitch was Jim Sundberg, a six-time Gold Glover, who had Nolan Ryan - Baseball-Reference.com [17], In five seasons with the Mets, 105 games and 74 starts, Ryan had a 2938 record, with a 3.58 ERA, 1.39 WHIP, with 344 walks and 493 strikeouts in 511 innings. After Ryan hit Robin Ventura of the Chicago White Sox with a pitch, Ventura charged the mound in order to fight Ryan, who was 20 years his senior. The ultimate Nolan Ryan game had to be his duel against Luis Tiant of the Red Sox on June 14, 1974, a Friday night at Anaheim Stadium. [6] In junior high school, Ryan could throw a softball over 100 yards. "In a move that seems both bizarre and yet totally typical, Ryan stepped back out for a curtain call. Nolan Ryan A primitive radar gun clocked a ninth-inning fastball at 100.8 miles per hour (162.2km/h) when it was 10 feet (3.0m) in front of home plate. For Ryan, as soon as the game was over, he forgot about it, brushed it from memory. Baseball Almanac That was not Nolan Ryan's way. For him, worrying about what somebody did the game before was a waste of energy. (Ryan was joined in this category by Darren Oliver, who made his major league debut as Ryan's teammate in September 1993. Bush) management of domestic issues and said he wasn't "locked in" to voting for Bush that fall. [60] Ryan also played during the administrations of seven U.S. PresidentsLyndon B. Johnson, Richard M. Nixon, Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, and Bill Clintonequaling a 20th-century record that had been set by Jim Kaat. Senior captain Nate Mitchell registered a career-high seven strikeouts in the opening game of Saturday's doubleheader, but the Navy baseball team fell to Massachusetts, 4-2, in the series opener before dropping the back half of the twinbill by a 14-3 score at Terwilliger Brothers Field at Max Bishop Stadium. "[71][72], In 1995 the Texas State Legislature declared State Highway 288, which passes near Alvin, as the Nolan Ryan Expressway. Nothing. He struck out 17 of the 20 batters he faced spanning 6 1/3 innings over two appearances, picking up the win in both contests. Morning Briefing: Justin Verlander Dabbling With Changeup How fast he threw depends on who Emblematic of this, his 1974 no-hitter against the Minnesota Twins included eight walks. We were teammates on Cleveland and driving past Anaheim Stadium. Knife fights. He never did anything to enhance himself physically. [65], Ryan and Frank Robinson are the only two major league players to have their number retired by three teams on which they played. Incredibly, pitchers Leon Cadore and Joe Oeschger each went the distance. His Astros teammate Bob Knepper said this, which I think is telling as well: "You can't imagine how determined you have to be to throw your hardest fastball every time. I won't hit him anyway! Ryan had five of the 14 highest game scores of the season, a one-person highlight reel. Despite his .333 winning percentage, Ryan tied for 5th place in the 1987 Cy Young voting. Javascript is required for the selection of a player. Nolan Ryan Fast Facts The Mets later drafted Ryan. Greenberg became managing general partner and CEO, while Ryan remained as team president. He maintained this velocity throughout his pitching career. Near the end of Ryan's career, the evaluation shifted. Redshirt sophomore righthander Ryan Brown made a pair of relief appearances for the Cardinals at the Swig & Swine College Classic in Charleston, South Carolina. On Aug. 20, 1974, in a game against the Detroit Tigers, then Angels pitcher Nolan Ryan pitched an 11-inning complete game 1-0 loss. What's the Dodgers' plan at shortstop? Ryan stated afterwards it was the same maneuver he used on steers he had to brand on his Texas ranch.