In my eyes, the greatest pitching talent to ever grace the mound. Records that will stand forever. I was fortunate enough to see no hitter number 4 in person for my first ever live game. Ryan was amazing!
The guy could pitch. I watched he punch out 16 Detroit Tigers one night in Anaheim. On a good night ... incredible. Next to Walter Johnson he's up there. The ting about Ryan was that he was a *very* inconsistent pitcher. He only won 32 more games than he lost. He walked more batters than any pitcher in history at 2795 and there is no one else even close. So you never knew what you were going to get on any given start. On an good night he was incredible, but on a bad night .... he had a lot of bad nights. That being said, I loved to watch him pitch.
@@nonyobussiness3440 they mean everything, it's all you got. Besides, I'm done with baseball after the Atlanta fiasco. Worst own goal in baseball history.
@@seanohare5488 Boy, I couldn't agree more. I'm 66 and miss the days when athletes didn't feel the need to do dances in the end zone, beat their chests in the outfield, etc. Like Nolan Ryan, they just let their playing speak for itself and didn't need to call attention to themselves otherwise. That's humility; that's class. The pervasive showboating these days is why I don't watch professional sports anymore. I'll just watch these great old clips, thank you.
My father wasn't in my life much growing up. But Nolan Ryan was. Imagine being 11-13 years old and being a Little League pitcher, and Nolan Ryan is your favorite player. Now imagine Nolan and his wife, Ruth are friends, neighbors, you played catch with him, babysit for them. He has been one of the greatest influences of my life. The day he signed the Houston Astros contract and he would no longer be a California Angel is still one of the darkest I can remember. Thank you for leading by example off the field, Nolan, and thank you for allowing me to watch up close the best damn pitcher The Game of Baseball has ever known. And thank you, God!
@@showtime951 yes, I never liked politics or anything but Nolan was my inspiration. What a cool baseball player. He was a force. In Texas when I was little I always loved watching him practice in Austin with his son. They owned a minor league team
@@ddub1981 - You picked an awfully cool inspiration. Nolan wasn't a force, he was THE force. We used to say, "Whose mound is it?" The guys would respond, "It's Nolan's mound!" My best.
Look you can't argue with the facts 7 No Hitters, 5,000 K's and oh yeah 300 Wins GOAT! Just the simple fact that he never had a major arm injury is amazing in itself what a talent.
@@jeffboy13 What a shame just imagine if he played on some better teams, he'd probably have 5 or 6 Cy Youngs. Everybody forgets how good of a curveball he had imagine being the hitter your looking for that 100 mph heater and you get a curveball that looks like it falls off the end of a table. Just filthy, filthy stuff.
A pitcher like Nolan should've never been traded to any other team. He's a generational and a Hall of Fame talent that should've been an untouchable piece on any team. Players like this are once in a lifetime and once realized, there isn't a price that can be paid to trade for them.
As a 9 year old White Sox fan watching the game on TV, I was begging Robbie not to charge the old man. Ryan's as tough as a leather strap, and he whipped Ventura good.
Ventura was the only guy to get 7 hits off of Nolan Ryan in a single game ever. Of course, they weren't the kind that improve your batting average... :D LOL!
They both had that pin point placement. Maddox relied on off speed and painting corners with a low 80s fastball. Nolan was almost as good at pitch placement but obviously had around 15+ mph to work with. I think Maddox career may be more impressive cause of how he didnt have that speed to fall back on. But yes Nolan is the goat imo!
I agree till u said their styles were diff. I think maybe their approach was diff, bc Ryan threw gas, but their style (wind up and delivery) were very similar, and their attitudes of sitting guys down was very similar.
Everyone talks about how much heat Ryan had. However, what made him so dangerous as a pitcher was that he had a wicked curveball that worked beautifully with that blistering fast ball of his.
People talk about the sizzle of the ball going past them. I think he was hitting 100 or 101 in his late 20s, but I'll bet what made his pitches so nasty was the spin rate and that's why they were so noisy going past a batter.
When Nolan was in the groove his fastball was unhittable and curveball made many a batter buckle. What a baseball Legend. Most of all he was so dang humble about his accomplishments. Each victory and chalk mark into the history books towards the last few years of his career was well ... got that done now time to get ready for the next game. What a baseball legend.
Will NEVER understand why anyone got mad when Ryan struck them out. Did they actually think they were going to hit it? His fast ball got there so quick, it seemed like he let go of it at the plate. A force undimmed through his entire career
A great anecdote- I was flipping through the channels way back when and I came across a baseball game. Not a big fan, but the pitcher threw a strike, and I was, "Hey, it's Nolan Ryan!" then consecutively my thoughts were, "Hey, it's the 9th inning." He throws another strike. "Hey, he's throwing a no-hitter!" He throws strike three. "No way!! He got another one!!" the crowd and team erupt. I bask in the moment, having watched Nolan Ryan throw a no-hitter within two minutes. Will never forget. Best pitcher ever.
Its crazy how when he knows he just burned someone. He simply looks at the ground like he feels sry for them. No trash talk from this guy he is the REAL DEAL.
Nolan Ryan is definitely my favorite pitcher to watch. Never boring, that's certain! There's just something about a "Nolan Ryan fastball"!! Bob Gibson and Randy Johnson, Honorable Mention.....
@@richardpeetrinpeetrin9817 yes, you can go on and on with extremely good pitchers. Nolan would probably start talking about them too. If you look at the people commenting. They just always bring up no cy young. So what. He was a 9 inning pitcher.
The way he delivers is like clock work. He is ready all the time and is anxious to throw. No bullshit. No trickery. He gives his batters no chance to relax, as if they would be able to anyway.
I don't think I will ever get tired of that clip of Nolan serving up about a dozen knuckle sandwiches in a row to Ventura. That poor kid had no idea what he was getting into. Lol.
@@fasteddie9867 Good for you loser. Stay home in your mom's basement and hide from the world with your loser view on today's baseball. You aren't a real baseball fan.
It doesn't matter how many times I see it... Ventura getting pummeled is one of the greatest moments in baseball. Ryan was probably the best pitcher of all time... gas, change or curve... you were gonna have a rough day facing him. And to top it off... he pitched forever. 8 time All-Star. 69 Series. 2 times ERA champ. And the whopper : 5714 strike-outs.
Absolutely the best pitcher I ever watched l loved watching him pitch at night you could really see his talents so much better no better pitcher than Ryan so miss old boys like him never be one better we miss you cowboy
How is he not the greatest!!? I'm 52 and I will probably die never to see anyone exceed the achievements of this great man!!! To all the critics 🖕🖕🖕 ......in my life time I was privileged to see... Nolan Ryan, Johnny Cash, Dale Earnhardt, Michael Jordan, and the '90s Cowboys... I'm good.
I saw Nolan Ryan pitch the first pitch of three different teams that he was on. I just happen to be in the right place at the right time when he left one club and went to another club and the sound of that ball hitting the catcher mitt was glorious
Yeah my brother had season tickets from his law firm, and gave me two for me and my wife Nolan was pitching when he was warming up my wife said what was that loud noise I said that was the ball hitting the mitt after.molan threw it she still didn't believe me because the sound was delayed but she finally realized it was from his pitch.
7 no hitters, yes. But the other truly amazing statistic is that Nolan has 12 one hitters. It could just as easily have been 12 no hitters and 7 one hitters. Ryan was truly a power pitcher.
@@dominickclaflin5295Ryan control the game. His velocity increase as he went on through the game. It's very hard to get those no hits in the last 2 innings. Most batters kinda got you figured out. So yea 7 no hitters is tough.
Glad they included some Mets highlights. I was in the stands for his finest game as a Met. April 18, 1970 vs the Phillies. He gave up a leadoff single to Phillies 2B Denny Doyle, allowed no other hits, struck out 15, walked 5 in a 7-0 shutout. He even singled in his last at-bat and promptly scored on a HR by Tommie Agee. Too bad the Mets didn't keep him, but dumb trades were their M. O. back then 🙄
Today's pitchers simply cannot compare to the legendary Nolan Ryan and Satchel Paige. These two hurlers were known for their incredible velocity, especially because both guys were throwing gas in their 40s and It's rare to see older pitchers still throwing with such force, which suggests that they must have thrown considerably harder when they were younger. It is difficult to fathom the remarkable radar gun readings that these two would have accomplished in their heyday; one can only guess.
Dat change up……..waaaayyy underrated. The movement and tunneling he used. Fastballs up and away with the curve that started up and away and hit the plate. Then another curve that came straight and hit the dirt there was so much drop. Top five prettiest mechanics ever.
To your point: In 1987 he played with the Houston Astros and though hosting a 2.76 ERA w/270 strike outs, his season record was 8wins to 16 losses! www.baseball-reference.com/players/r/ryanno01.shtml
Ryan also has 12 1-hit games. I don't know how many of those were no-hitters spoiled in the 9th inning, but imagine what could have been. 7 no-hitters is likely untouchable, but imagine if it could have been 8 or 9.
@@AnthonyWW45 to be fair, Walter Johnson won over 400 games playing for some of the worst teams in history. Perennial last place team. 25 wins for a team that won 66 (1910), 25 wins again for a team that won 64 (1911), 25 wins for a team that won 76 (1916), 23 wins for a team that won 6 (1917), and so it went. It's bad when you are winning 34-45% of your teams games. You work with it. Run support helps but it's not the determiner.
Greatest pitcher of all time. I saw him pitch when he was with Houston, and had a seat right behind home plate. I heard Ryan grunt, I heard the the ball smack the catchers mitt, but for the first three innings I never saw the fast ball. 7 no-hitters, that's enough right there to make him the greatest.
He was a joy to watch in the Astrodome. Often, it took him 2 innings to warm up then when he got going, look out! Charging the mound with Nolan Ryan on top was always a mistake.
In 1985, I was a student reporter in college. I was able to get a Mets press pass vs. the Astros. Dumb me, got to the park too late and missed Nolan Ryan. Missed a chance to see my favorite player of all time.
Imagine a pitcher today going nine innings with 13 strikeouts. He was a beast think about it he pitched to players that played from the 1950’s to the 2000’s.
Imaging having the longest baseball career in history while playing the position (pitcher) with the shortest average career and a powerhouse pitcher to boot. Nolan Ryan was amazing.
Thanks for this, Nolan Ryan was/is my hero and the greatest to ever take the mound. It brought back a lot of memories for me. And I'm only old enough to remember his Astros/Rangers years!
because cy young was usually judged by how many wins a pitcher had. ryan had trouble getting wins cus he was always on shitty teams with weak offense that didnt score enough runs for him when he was pitching. to win a baseball game a team must have good batting.... ryan being a pitcher, well, easy to figure out. a ton of his losses as a pitcher were not because of him.
@@Kevin_40 Food for thought... The Rocket won 7 Cy Young awards while never tossing a "no-no" during them flawless seasons. Not only that but he was void of them his entire career. Nolan "the express" Ryan never won a Cy Young award in his illustrious career however managed to hurl 7 "no-no's and 1 of them coming at the ripe old age of 44.
My dad loves him. He actually met him. He used to live in Las Vegas and when he was at a casino he saw Ryan and played poker with him and a few friends. I’m trying to buy him a signed photo or send Ryan something to sign for him.
I don't care what anybody says Nolan Ryan is the greatest Pitcher in MLB history. Don't believe me look at his stats. He holds 51 MLB records and would have more if he played on some better teams.
I don't think man will ever be able to build a robot that could endure like Nolan Ryan did. The man was more like a machine than a human being. Just think of how many times in his life Ryan threw the ball as hard as he could without . It just boggles the mind!!
I had one chance to watch him pitch live. His Astros were in town playing the Padres when I lived in SD. My dad and I went to the game because Nolan was his favorite pitcher, but he had back spasms or something like that during warm ups and couldn't pitch that night. He retired the year before I moved to Fort Worth.
Appreciate the extensive footage. With it you don't need to debate radar gun technology. You can see with the naked eye that his heater is just at another level compared to the flamethrowers of today.
I was born in 67 in the shadows of Anaheim Stadium. The California Angels were my favorite (home) team. Nolan Ryan was my favorite player, E V E R. I mimicked his windup from my earliest LL to early college years. The most players I ever struck out in a single game was 15 (in a 7 inning game). NOLAN RYAN...legend that I was honored to witness first hand (many times).
Ryan spent a large chunk of his career starting on 4-days rest. His arm was a thunderbolt laid on his body by Zeus himself. No one will break his career strikeout record or his career no hitter record.
Watching him bean Ventura, then land one haymaker after another on him when he charged the mound is just awesome. He didn't even hesitate when he saw the charge coming; just prepped for the can of whoopass he was about to unload.
Was that a rising fastball. When I was a little league tike I used to try and pitch the 4 seam riser. I started getting better at it - a buddy of mine was catching for me in the back yard and I hit him in the forehead. He said it did rise up a bit. I used to love playing baseball.
@@tombyorn8278 It is physically impossible for a baseball that was thrown by a human to rise with spin alone. But you can get it to appear to not drop or glide by throwing it hard enough and with enough rpm. It still is accelerating towards the ground at 9.8 m/s^2.
The greatest pitcher of all time ,7 no hitters countless 1 hitters almost 6000 Ks pitched in 4 decades of baseball and did this as a right handed pitcher which hard to do.
This man was the absolute best ever. Hell the only one I can think of close to him was Greg Maddux. I know they are totally different pitchers. But Maddux was really good too
I will die on the hill that Nolan Ryan is the greatest pitcher of all time and it’s sad he never won a cy young because he played on bad teams and voters cared more about team performance rather than personal performance
The Greatest Pitcher of All Time. The only Pitcher that can walk the first 3 batters of every inning & can then strike out the next 3 batters for 9 innings Str8
Not only does Ryan hold the record for most strikeouts in a career with 5,714... but he also holds the record for the fewest hits allowed per 9 innings in a career with 6.6. Remarkably, he pitched 5,386 innings in his career.
I called his foundation in Texas. A nice lady answered the phone. I asked her if she sees Nolan. She said yes. Is he as nice as i have heard? No, she said. He is nicer! 😊
His changeup was really underrated too. Not just the velocity but the tailing movement. As if hitters didn't already have enough to think about. Just unfair :-D
His curve had a bend and a heavy drop to it. That’s a Nasty Pitch and it made his fastball even more unhittable. A lot of strain on his elbow and shoulder, even on his left leg, I am surprised he lasted that long!
In my opinion Big Tex was the greatest power pitcher of all time. His records will stand for a long time. I was at Ranger Stadium when he pitched to Bo Jackson. That was power vs power. A sight to see.
In my eyes, the greatest pitching talent to ever grace the mound. Records that will stand forever. I was fortunate enough to see no hitter number 4 in person for my first ever live game. Ryan was amazing!
The guy could pitch. I watched he punch out 16 Detroit Tigers one night in Anaheim. On a good night ... incredible. Next to Walter Johnson he's up there. The ting about Ryan was that he was a *very* inconsistent pitcher. He only won 32 more games than he lost. He walked more batters than any pitcher in history at 2795 and there is no one else even close. So you never knew what you were going to get on any given start. On an good night he was incredible, but on a bad night .... he had a lot of bad nights. That being said, I loved to watch him pitch.
Yea Ryan is the most impressive pitcher ever. Its incredible what he did.
@@theccpisaparasite8813 raw stats mean nothing
@@nonyobussiness3440 they mean everything, it's all you got. Besides, I'm done with baseball after the Atlanta fiasco. Worst own goal in baseball history.
His records and Cy Young 511 wins and 749 complete games can be lasered into titanium lol forget etching in stone
And he accomplished all that greatness with total humility. He's definitely the kind of athlete you'd want your kid to emulate.
I agree the showboating now in sports is sickening
@@seanohare5488 Boy, I couldn't agree more. I'm 66 and miss the days when athletes didn't feel the need to do dances in the end zone, beat their chests in the outfield, etc. Like Nolan Ryan, they just let their playing speak for itself and didn't need to call attention to themselves otherwise. That's humility; that's class. The pervasive showboating these days is why I don't watch professional sports anymore. I'll just watch these great old clips, thank you.
My father wasn't in my life much growing up. But Nolan Ryan was. Imagine being 11-13 years old and being a Little League pitcher, and Nolan Ryan is your favorite player. Now imagine Nolan and his wife, Ruth are friends, neighbors, you played catch with him, babysit for them.
He has been one of the greatest influences of my life. The day he signed the Houston Astros contract and he would no longer be a California Angel is still one of the darkest I can remember.
Thank you for leading by example off the field, Nolan, and thank you for allowing me to watch up close the best damn pitcher The Game of Baseball has ever known. And thank you, God!
@@showtime951 yes, I never liked politics or anything but Nolan was my inspiration. What a cool baseball player. He was a force. In Texas when I was little I always loved watching him practice in Austin with his son. They owned a minor league team
@@ddub1981 -
You picked an awfully cool inspiration. Nolan wasn't a force, he was THE force.
We used to say, "Whose mound is it?"
The guys would respond, "It's Nolan's mound!"
My best.
Bless you 🙏
I literally have a complete Nolan Ryan card set, a legend, this is when baseball was pure.
loved how unassuming he was...every milestone he just shook hands and looked all business...the 7th no no he finally cracked a big grin
you're right my friend took care of business simply said ::::next strike out please dinner is getting cold.
Barry Sandersesque
Look you can't argue with the facts 7 No Hitters, 5,000 K's and oh yeah 300 Wins GOAT! Just the simple fact that he never had a major arm injury is amazing in itself what a talent.
A major arm injury ended his starting line up duties.......he said he would never be a reliever and thus retired.
.204 Batting average against alone is just insane!
I think he also had 12 one hitters
How he never won a cy young?? 🤦♂️🤦♂️
@@jeffboy13 What a shame just imagine if he played on some better teams, he'd probably have 5 or 6 Cy Youngs. Everybody forgets how good of a curveball he had imagine being the hitter your looking for that 100 mph heater and you get a curveball that looks like it falls off the end of a table. Just filthy, filthy stuff.
A pitcher like Nolan should've never been traded to any other team. He's a generational and a Hall of Fame talent that should've been an untouchable piece on any team. Players like this are once in a lifetime and once realized, there isn't a price that can be paid to trade for them.
Nolan Ryan was a stud. A true gentleman in life and an assassin on the mound.
Agree
There will NEVER be another one like this. They don’t make ‘em like Nolan Ryan anymore!
Never ever ever
Agree
That Ventura beating.. That's got to be one of the most humiliating things humankind has ever seen.
Definitely a career highlight, he gave him the business
As a 9 year old White Sox fan watching the game on TV, I was begging Robbie not to charge the old man. Ryan's as tough as a leather strap, and he whipped Ventura good.
Was Ryan thrown out for that? Also did Ventura get a punch in?
@@kw7807 He pummeled Ryan's fist with his face.
Ventura was the only guy to get 7 hits off of Nolan Ryan in a single game ever. Of course, they weren't the kind that improve your batting average... :D LOL!
Just greatness... The announcers are nostalgic. Feels like a different game back then.
It feels alive. Had more soul.
Everything is cookie cutter corporate bullshit now
It was different
It was
@@steviechampagne lol remember when managers smoked in dugouts?
I'm 42, it's a different game from when I grew up, too much money on all sides.
My two favorite pitchers of all time - Nolan Ryan and Greg Maddux. Their styles were so different yet so dominant.
Agreed. Two best ever. Endurance. Quality. Class. A-Z complete package.
Polar opposite pitchers. Both absolute legends
They both had that pin point placement. Maddox relied on off speed and painting corners with a low 80s fastball. Nolan was almost as good at pitch placement but obviously had around 15+ mph to work with. I think Maddox career may be more impressive cause of how he didnt have that speed to fall back on. But yes Nolan is the goat imo!
I agree till u said their styles were diff. I think maybe their approach was diff, bc Ryan threw gas, but their style (wind up and delivery) were very similar, and their attitudes of sitting guys down was very similar.
Mine two fav as well.
Everyone talks about how much heat Ryan had. However, what made him so dangerous as a pitcher was that he had a wicked curveball that worked beautifully with that blistering fast ball of his.
People talk about the sizzle of the ball going past them. I think he was hitting 100 or 101 in his late 20s, but I'll bet what made his pitches so nasty was the spin rate and that's why they were so noisy going past a batter.
Curve was amazing.
Agree
I love how casual Nolan Ryan walks off the mound after a strikeout. Like it's just another day.
Definitely polar opposite of Randy Johnson or Pedro Martinez.
Tom Glavine had a smooth swagger after a strike 3 3rd out.
Them casual strikes he threw to Ventura looked like just another day!!
@@mikezak8812 Glavine never had as many strikeouts, though. Nolan Ryan still holds the record for that. Randy Johnson 2nd with 1000 strikeouts less.
To Nolan Ryan it was just another day and just another K.
When Nolan was in the groove his fastball was unhittable and curveball made many a batter buckle. What a baseball Legend. Most of all he was so dang humble about his accomplishments. Each victory and chalk mark into the history books towards the last few years of his career was well ... got that done now time to get ready for the next game. What a baseball legend.
Will NEVER understand why anyone got mad when Ryan struck them out. Did they actually think they were going to hit it? His fast ball got there so quick, it seemed like he let go of it at the plate. A force undimmed through his entire career
The Ryan Expess!! 4 decades of dominance....... amazing what this man did. a strikeout record that will never be broken..
A great anecdote- I was flipping through the channels way back when and I came across a baseball game. Not a big fan, but the pitcher threw a strike, and I was, "Hey, it's Nolan Ryan!" then consecutively my thoughts were, "Hey, it's the 9th inning." He throws another strike. "Hey, he's throwing a no-hitter!" He throws strike three. "No way!! He got another one!!" the crowd and team erupt. I bask in the moment, having watched Nolan Ryan throw a no-hitter within two minutes. Will never forget. Best pitcher ever.
Its crazy how when he knows he just burned someone. He simply looks at the ground like he feels sry for them. No trash talk from this guy he is the REAL DEAL.
The all-time leader in strikeouts by almost 1,000 was the real deal? Who knew?!
Exactly a straight up MAN!
He's old school so it's like a job to him. The only time he'd show emotion is if someone charged the mound lol
He didn't need to, they knew
Nolan Ryan is definitely my favorite pitcher to watch. Never boring, that's certain! There's just something about a "Nolan Ryan fastball"!! Bob Gibson and Randy Johnson, Honorable Mention.....
@@richardpeetrinpeetrin9817 yes, you can go on and on with extremely good pitchers. Nolan would probably start talking about them too. If you look at the people commenting. They just always bring up no cy young. So what. He was a 9 inning pitcher.
The way he delivers is like clock work. He is ready all the time and is anxious to throw. No bullshit. No trickery. He gives his batters no chance to relax, as if they would be able to anyway.
relax? no fucking way. 110mph heaters that could be wild at any time.
27 years of making hitters look foolish. There will never be another pitcher like Nolan.
Overrated.......he was a pedestrian pitcher
I don't think I will ever get tired of that clip of Nolan serving up about a dozen knuckle sandwiches in a row to Ventura. That poor kid had no idea what he was getting into. Lol.
Yeah, that was great. Messed with a texan.
There will never be a another pitcher with such a delivery. A thing of beauty
Agree
How can anyone not miss this type of baseball? The game sux today.
Don't watch it then.
@@danielhoward4566 i don't ahole
@@fasteddie9867 Good for you loser. Stay home in your mom's basement and hide from the world with your loser view on today's baseball. You aren't a real baseball fan.
@@fasteddie9867 One more thing. Maybe you should watch ballet instead of baseball.
@@danielhoward4566 ballet is more exciting than baseball dicknose
It doesn't matter how many times I see it... Ventura getting pummeled is one of the greatest moments in baseball. Ryan was probably the best pitcher of all time... gas, change or curve... you were gonna have a rough day facing him. And to top it off... he pitched forever. 8 time All-Star. 69 Series. 2 times ERA champ. And the whopper : 5714 strike-outs.
I never realized he had 5714 K's.
Weird that both him and The Babe ended with 714.
Ryan's 5714 K's will never be touched.
Absolutely the best pitcher I ever watched l loved watching him pitch at night you could really see his talents so much better no better pitcher than Ryan so miss old boys like him never be one better we miss you cowboy
I don't know much about baseball but seems like Nolan Ryan is a Legend.
Ah...YUP!!!!!!!
He was
Those old astro jerseys look fantastic!
Hell yeah they are. The 1980's Houston Astros tequila sunrise uniforms were the bomb back in the day.
Yeah, those 70 and 80s uniforms were pretty cool
I was at the sixth no hitter in Oakland. As an A’s fan nothing but respect and joy for him.
How is he not the greatest!!? I'm 52 and I will probably die never to see anyone exceed the achievements of this great man!!! To all the critics 🖕🖕🖕 ......in my life time I was privileged to see... Nolan Ryan, Johnny Cash, Dale Earnhardt, Michael Jordan, and the '90s Cowboys... I'm good.
You forgot Larry......
@@frankieelder3210 touche 😃
Better is the 70’s Steelers, but I digress
As a kid I used to mimic Nolan from his start up to his grunting release. I struck out 19 out of 21(7 inning little League) one game. He was a God!
Nolan Ryan is also the all-time leader in making the catcher's mitt go "WHAP!".
No idea how he never won a Cy Young award. He's my favorite pitcher of all time.
I saw Nolan Ryan pitch the first pitch of three different teams that he was on. I just happen to be in the right place at the right time when he left one club and went to another club and the sound of that ball hitting the catcher mitt was glorious
There was nothing like seeing Ryan pitch live. It was a thunder clap when the ball hit the mitt.
Yeah my brother had season tickets from his law firm, and gave me two for me and my wife Nolan was pitching when he was warming up my wife said what was that loud noise I said that was the ball hitting the mitt after.molan threw it she still didn't believe me because the sound was delayed but she finally realized it was from his pitch.
7 no hitters, yes. But the other truly amazing statistic is that Nolan has 12 one hitters. It could just as easily have been 12 no hitters and 7 one hitters. Ryan was truly a power pitcher.
I once saw a stat that he had like 40 no hitters going into the 7th inning
@@dominickclaflin5295Ryan control the game. His velocity increase as he went on through the game. It's very hard to get those no hits in the last 2 innings. Most batters kinda got you figured out. So yea 7 no hitters is tough.
in a perfect world, Nolan Ryan would have 19 no-hitters and 6,000 strikeouts
@@tigers2026And would have sold a million more American Standard ACs and 10 million more Advils.
Glad they included some Mets highlights. I was in the stands for his finest game as a Met. April 18, 1970 vs the Phillies. He gave up a leadoff single to Phillies 2B Denny Doyle, allowed no other hits, struck out 15, walked 5 in a 7-0 shutout. He even singled in his last at-bat and promptly scored on a HR by Tommie Agee. Too bad the Mets didn't keep him, but dumb trades were their M. O. back then 🙄
Agree
Can't believe the Mets management let Nolan and Tom seaver go beyond dumb
They got rid of the whole staff. Tug mcgraw. Gentry koosman eventually
Today's pitchers simply cannot compare to the legendary Nolan Ryan and Satchel Paige. These two hurlers were known for their incredible velocity, especially because both guys were throwing gas in their 40s and It's rare to see older pitchers still throwing with such force, which suggests that they must have thrown considerably harder when they were younger. It is difficult to fathom the remarkable radar gun readings that these two would have accomplished in their heyday; one can only guess.
There have been a few great pitchers, more than a few.
But no one more exciting than Nolan Ryan.
Dat change up……..waaaayyy underrated. The movement and tunneling he used. Fastballs up and away with the curve that started up and away and hit the plate. Then another curve that came straight and hit the dirt there was so much drop. Top five prettiest mechanics ever.
It still brings a smile to my face; watching Nolan mow hitters down! That was an era that striking out was shameful, unlike today
You wonder how many wins Ryan would have ended his career with if he hadn’t played on so many lackluster teams... 🤔
To your point: In 1987 he played with the Houston Astros and though hosting a 2.76 ERA w/270 strike outs, his season record was 8wins to 16 losses!
www.baseball-reference.com/players/r/ryanno01.shtml
Ryan also has 12 1-hit games. I don't know how many of those were no-hitters spoiled in the 9th inning, but imagine what could have been. 7 no-hitters is likely untouchable, but imagine if it could have been 8 or 9.
@@andaimhineach4131 With an era of 2.76, that is worth almost 20 wins anytime. But he played on some bad teams!
Kinda like Randy Johnson.
@@AnthonyWW45 to be fair, Walter Johnson won over 400 games playing for some of the worst teams in history. Perennial last place team. 25 wins for a team that won 66 (1910), 25 wins again for a team that won 64 (1911), 25 wins for a team that won 76 (1916), 23 wins for a team that won 6 (1917), and so it went. It's bad when you are winning 34-45% of your teams games. You work with it. Run support helps but it's not the determiner.
I was there for his last big league win. Old Cleveland Municipal Stadium. What a guy.
Greatest pitcher of all time. I saw him pitch when he was with Houston, and had a seat right behind home plate. I heard Ryan grunt, I heard the the ball smack the catchers mitt, but for the first three innings I never saw the fast ball. 7 no-hitters, that's enough right there to make him the greatest.
His fastball just looked different. His curve was unhitable.
His split disappeared.
The best power pitcher EVER!!!
Agree
He was a joy to watch in the Astrodome. Often, it took him 2 innings to warm up then when he got going, look out! Charging the mound with Nolan Ryan on top was always a mistake.
In 1985, I was a student reporter in college.
I was able to get a Mets press pass vs. the Astros.
Dumb me, got to the park too late and missed Nolan Ryan.
Missed a chance to see my favorite player of all time.
Simply the best.😊
Definitely
Imagine a pitcher today going nine innings with 13 strikeouts. He was a beast think about it he pitched to players that played from the 1950’s to the 2000’s.
The Hall Of Fame pitcher....by which...ALL OTHERS are measured...possibly the greatest of all time.
Imaging having the longest baseball career in history while playing the position (pitcher) with the shortest average career and a powerhouse pitcher to boot. Nolan Ryan was amazing.
This made my day! Thank you for posting this. Nolan Ryan, the GOAT.
Thanks for this, Nolan Ryan was/is my hero and the greatest to ever take the mound. It brought back a lot of memories for me. And I'm only old enough to remember his Astros/Rangers years!
Seriously how did this guy never win a cy young award?
because cy young was usually judged by how many wins a pitcher had. ryan had trouble getting wins cus he was always on shitty teams with weak offense that didnt score enough runs for him when he was pitching. to win a baseball game a team must have good batting.... ryan being a pitcher, well, easy to figure out. a ton of his losses as a pitcher were not because of him.
@@Kevin_40 Food for thought... The Rocket won 7 Cy Young awards while never tossing a "no-no" during them flawless seasons. Not only that but he was void of them his entire career. Nolan "the express" Ryan never won a Cy Young award in his illustrious career however managed to hurl 7 "no-no's and 1 of them coming at the ripe old age of 44.
@@andygermain7948 Ryan also had a crap ton of one hitters. He was virtual unhittable those nights he was on.
@@andygermain7948 Its really freaky if you think about it...lol
My dad loves him. He actually met him. He used to live in Las Vegas and when he was at a casino he saw Ryan and played poker with him and a few friends. I’m trying to buy him a signed photo or send Ryan something to sign for him.
Those pitches against T.O. at the end, wow. Some of them look like they could bore through a tree!
@Nathan Reaney Yes it's me again, and I need your help. Ask jomboy to breakdown Japanese log riding, the world needs it.
@Nathan Reaney Cheers mate.
I don't care what anybody says Nolan Ryan is the greatest Pitcher in MLB history. Don't believe me look at his stats. He holds 51 MLB records and would have more if he played on some better teams.
I don't think man will ever be able to build a robot that could endure like Nolan Ryan did. The man was more like a machine than a human being. Just think of how many times in his life Ryan threw the ball as hard as he could without . It just boggles the mind!!
7 no-hitters... but did you know he also had 12 one-hitters and 18 2-hitters? Amazing!
Wow, I was lucky enough to see him pitch a 1 hitter against the Padres, in San Diego. The no-hitter was broken up late in the game by Tim Flannery.
That was a great breakdown and it brought back so many memories from back in the day!!!
Nolan Ryan the original definition of you can't see me
The tom Brady of pitchers in history
@@jeffreyrodgers2586 tom is the GOAT
無理のない投球フォーム。きれいな投げ方！だから長いこと現役でやってこれた。❤
I had one chance to watch him pitch live. His Astros were in town playing the Padres when I lived in SD. My dad and I went to the game because Nolan was his favorite pitcher, but he had back spasms or something like that during warm ups and couldn't pitch that night. He retired the year before I moved to Fort Worth.
So glad I got to see him pitch in person on more than one occasion. The best.
Me too! Including next to his last game of his career. About 20 years after I saw him in the game for the first time, believe it or not.
The shocked look of the batters as they can t believe it got passed them. Incredible.
With pitching as it is now Nolan Ryan's records won't ever be broken, let's not forget Nolan's epic 6 hitter he had on Robin ventura's dome!!😂
Appreciate the extensive footage. With it you don't need to debate radar gun technology. You can see with the naked eye that his heater is just at another level compared to the flamethrowers of today.
How to believe he never won a Cy Young award. Greatest pitcher of all time.
I was born in 67 in the shadows of Anaheim Stadium. The California Angels were my favorite (home) team. Nolan Ryan was my favorite player, E V E R. I mimicked his windup from my earliest LL to early college years.
The most players I ever struck out in a single game was 15 (in a 7 inning game).
NOLAN RYAN...legend that I was honored to witness first hand (many times).
This video brought back some great memories. Thanks for sharing.
That 1986 NLCS Game 3 performance from Nolan Ryan was perhaps one of the best games a pitcher could pitch without winning the game.
Ryan spent a large chunk of his career starting on 4-days rest. His arm was a thunderbolt laid on his body by Zeus himself. No one will break his career strikeout record or his career no hitter record.
Nice video bro.The manager must have been going crazy with Ryan punching ventura with his valuable right hand.
Watching him bean Ventura, then land one haymaker after another on him when he charged the mound is just awesome. He didn't even hesitate when he saw the charge coming; just prepped for the can of whoopass he was about to unload.
His fastball doesn't dip a bit. It looks like a laser beam. lol
Was that a rising fastball. When I was a little league tike I used to try and pitch the 4 seam riser. I started getting better at it - a buddy of mine was catching for me in the back yard and I hit him in the forehead. He said it did rise up a bit. I used to love playing baseball.
@@tombyorn8278 It is physically impossible for a baseball that was thrown by a human to rise with spin alone. But you can get it to appear to not drop or glide by throwing it hard enough and with enough rpm. It still is accelerating towards the ground at 9.8 m/s^2.
@@tombyorn8278 it’s impossible for a human being to throw a rising fastball. Your friend is a liar
My favorite Nolan Ryan highlight is my favorite Robin Ventura highlight...
Greatest pitcher ever! Tough!
The greatest pitcher of all time ,7 no hitters countless 1 hitters almost 6000 Ks pitched in 4 decades of baseball and did this as a right handed pitcher which hard to do.
This man was the absolute best ever. Hell the only one I can think of close to him was Greg Maddux. I know they are totally different pitchers. But Maddux was really good too
I will die on the hill that Nolan Ryan is the greatest pitcher of all time and it’s sad he never won a cy young because he played on bad teams and voters cared more about team performance rather than personal performance
The Greatest Pitcher of All Time. The only Pitcher that can walk the first 3 batters of every inning & can then strike out the next 3 batters for 9 innings Str8
I remember Ryan as a Met. Sadly, they gave up on him too soon, much to their eternal regret.
Youre ancient.
@@tomg2304 Thank you! You'll be my age someday.:)
@@8avexp , only if I'm lucky.
I used to think those “lifesaver” Astros uniforms were ugly, now I think they are fire.
Absolute freak of nature.
I never seen so many batters so upset
Nolan Ryan holds the Major League record for the most Major League records.
Vin Scully on Nolan Ryan "not only should he make the hall of fame, they should build him his own wing"
Not only does Ryan hold the record for most strikeouts in a career with 5,714... but he also holds the record for the fewest hits allowed per 9 innings in a career with 6.6. Remarkably, he pitched 5,386 innings in his career.
Nolan is a legend.
I played it in slow motion & it was still fast.
Nolan Ryan is the Brett favre of baseball
Nolan Ryan wasn't involved in any scandals. Brett Favre is no Nolan Ryan.
I called his foundation in Texas. A nice lady answered the phone. I asked her if she sees Nolan. She said yes. Is he as nice as i have heard? No, she said. He is nicer! 😊
everyone forgets this guys curve 99fast 82 breaking
His changeup was really underrated too. Not just the velocity but the tailing movement. As if hitters didn't already have enough to think about. Just unfair :-D
His curve had a bend and a heavy drop to it.
That’s a Nasty Pitch and it made his fastball even more unhittable.
A lot of strain on his elbow and shoulder, even on his left leg, I am surprised he lasted that long!
BEST EVER!!!!! nuff said.
Randy Johnson.
@@boodro2122 Maddux, Pedro, Randy....all better than Nolan
Simply an icon !!!
1:09... that just wasn't fair. Knight had zero chance.
Boy, he could throw. Fun too watch hitters try!!! Kofax, Gibson and Ryan all a joy too watch.
power pitcher that almost always lands in perfect fielding position. No ridiculous leg swing thing everyone does now
His last 2 no hitters were against teams that won the world series that year.
Wow
In my opinion Big Tex was the greatest power pitcher of all time. His records will stand for a long time. I was at Ranger Stadium when he pitched to Bo Jackson. That was power vs power. A sight to see.