Why did Nolan Ryan NEVER win a Cy Young Award?

[@zsheincustoms]

Even better question: Why did Cy Young never win a Cy Young? He must suck

[@Keith-ym3lm]

take your upvote and get out of here hahahahaha

[@corngreaterthanwheat]

511 wins is just a counting stat that proves he was a 5 starter on good teams!

[@yassercast21]

🤣🤣🤣

[@BaseballHistorian]

Bartolo Colon Cy Youngs: 1 Cy Young Cy Youngs: 0 Bartolo Colon > Cy Young confirmed

[@dkplaysallday7955]

And was still throwing 95

[@waltoncummins719]

Fun fact: Nolan Ryan had 7 no hitters and 0 Cy Youngs. Roger Clemens had 7 Cy Youngs and 0 no hitters.

[@commandershepard1838]

There’s a lot of guys that have no hitters that weren’t successful in the majors. Heck, galarragga threw a 28 out perfect game.

[@stillbornyesterday4975]

Cy Young had 49 Nolan Ryans and 49 Roger Clemens.

[@jimbeam4140]

I'll take Clemens EVERY DAY OF THE WEEK over Ryan. Clemens was a winner.

[@vincenthammons6705]

@@jimbeam4140 because of roids

[@chrisolivo6591]

@@jimbeam4140 Clemens would have never had the longevity if not for PED’s. He was done as pitcher by 1996, hence the RedSox letting him walk in Free Agency. They got criticized at that time when he revitalized his career in Toronto and than the Yankees. He never has that 2nd act without PED’s.

[@Harakanrules]

Another fun fact: 7 baseball players who were struck out by Nolan Ryan had sons who grew up to also get struck out by Nolan Ryan.

[@nomorefielders]

This man literally made his debut before we set foot on the moon and retired when Bill Clinton was president. That is insane

[@Resurgam1981]

Bill was such a great President

[@mikemorris3166]

Slick Willy is the man lol and that honestly blows my mind

[@HufflepuffBaseball42313]

@@Resurgam1981 I’m sure Monica Lewinsky thinks so

[@WampaReacts]

@@Resurgam1981 "I did not, have sexual relations with that woman. Miss Lewinsky....But I am wearing her Underwear."

[@piccolobolding5059]

Walked on the moon lol

[@dailytaylor]

Part of what makes him so legendary is his longevity. The man was a machine who just couldn't be stopped and set records that will probably stand for a long time. Nolan Ryan just became synonymous with baseball.

[@nicholasadams2374]

His records are safe. Thankfully. It's pure criminal that he never got a Cy Young, but he will live forever in our memories, on that stat lines, and in the record books. That's way more important. :)

[@mattc060793]

@@nicholasadams2374 There are plenty of great actors who never won an Academy Award. Awards aren't everything and are mostly subjective. Ryan's got the records just like instead of winning an academy award, some actors make stupid money at the box office.

[@mikewoods4772]

He wasn't on the radar, or anybody list of top players. He just navigated his way into the Hall Of fame . I was a kid collecting baseball cards back in the in the 70s and the kids didn't really gravitate towards his card.

[@MonkeyDDragon9-11]

@@mikewoods4772 We sure did in the 90's.

[@t004sm0ke]

What ripken got basically a mid game celebration for. Nolan got a swift boot in the ass and told appreciated your years of under appreciated service

[@marcvslicinivscrassvs7536]

I think 7 no-hitters, 5700 Ks and the Robin Ventura whopping more than makes up for it.

[@dondajulah4168]

They dont.

[@jmcd30]

Did any ever notice how when Ventura started toward Ryan he slowed down halfway and looked as if he was thinking "Shit I should not have done this". But of course he couldn't back off by then so he just took the beating 😂!!

[@marcvslicinivscrassvs7536]

@@jmcd30 Yeah he was probably thinking at first, Omg I'm gonna charge one of my boyhood heroes! Then he thought, hey he looks kinda mean up close...

[@ernestpassaro9663]

Big deal look at his lifetime record pales in comparison to other hall of fame pitchers !

[@YoPaulieMusic]

@@ernestpassaro9663 He played for a lot of shitty teams, he can't be blamed for the players poor performance behind him. He has the record for the most wins despite playing on many really bad teams.

[@felixmadison5736]

Nolan Ryan was a freak. I mean that in the nicest way possible. The man was almost more a machine than a human. Just unbelievable! I'm so glad I got to follow his entire career and marvel at what he accomplished.

[@JRobelen]

Not sure if he was a freak, but it seems he was really, really lucky to throw that hard for so long and not tear a major ligament until he was 42.

[@felixmadison5736]

@@JRobelen I hardly call something like Ryan's career and being free of injury, mere luck. Sure, luck has a part to play in each of our lives, but Nolan Ryan was just 'made different' than most of us.

[@hawaiianwater1913]

I'm pretty sure it was because he almost walked 11 batters per 9 innings

[@haroldsmyth6685]

Great career. Rather watch him on a so/so team than don sutton on a good pick your team

[@felixmadison5736]

@@haroldsmyth6685 I didn't mind watching Sutton when he was a rookie in '66 with the Dodgers. The man had one of the best curve balls in baseball. 12-6 dynomite!!!

[@loukorpas6029]

I worked with Nolan the 11 years I worked for them in marketing. A total class act that loved his family. A Great guy

[@SSNESS]

If he didn’t get hurt, how many more years did he have left?

[@nickmartin6835]

@@SSNESS honestly, probably as long as he wanted. I’m sure age would’ve caught up to him at some point and his elbow was ready to blow at any moment as well. It was just a matter of when

[@houstonrebel4449]

@@SSNESS That's like asking, "If someone didn't get cancer, how long would they have lived?"

[@lloydkline1518]

❤️ nolan ryan too

[@lloydkline1518]

Wow; lucky

[@m.o.5291]

I remember this being one of the greatest shocks of my childhood as a 90s kid. I really started to watch when the big unit, Clemens, Maddux, Schilling, Zito and all those other guys were on top. But the legend of the Ryan Express was very much alive and we used to study his mechanics from grainy footage. Him not winning a Cy Young was such a shock; glad to see he actually deserved to win one

[@howie9751]

His best season was 22-16, good but not great.

[@newagain9964]

No. He did not deserve it. No one deserves anything …in sports atleast. gotta earn it or take it. If u know what I mean.

[@m.o.5291]

@@newagain9964 he earned it. Do you even know who votes for thr cy young?

[@CesarGutierrez-sd1dr]

​@@newagain9964writting so badly! It's hard to know what you want yo say!

[@jdwest34]

He played during my grandpa’s era, my dad’s, and my own. Best ever, forever.

[@TERoss-jk9ny]

I was able to see him while pitching for the Angels when I was young. He threw HARD! You just never knew where it was going to go back then.

[@julianmayo5650]

All three eras?? He only played 25 years... how quick do y'all breed?? All having kids at 13?

[@timothydawson4155]

My dad passed down his Nolan ryan rookie card with Jerry kossman. I still have to this day!

[@mickeydrago9401]

@@timothydawson4155 Cool! Did you have it graded and encased?

[@John-78]

Not even close to the best ever. Not even in the discussion if you are being fair.

[@kingpm9072]

This man started the year my mom was born, and retired the year my sister was born.

[@owenexsoctagon9]

That is crazy

[@dldavis1212]

Plot twist, Nolan Ryan is your grandfather…

[@kinggremlin4574]

Which means pretty much nothing. Teenage pregnancy isn't exactly a rare occurrence in the US. The vast majority of MLB HOF'ers pitched for 15 or more years.

[@stephaniegormley9982]

A more telling stat is...in his rookie year he pitched against Harvey Kuenn and in his last year he pitched against Manny Ramirez.

[@kingpm9072]

@@stephaniegormley9982 that’s impressive in itself

[@cheddarcheese7928]

Growing up in the late 80’s I went to a lot of Phillies game.Whenever Nolan came to town I tried to get a ticket.Ive seen him pitch a bunch of times and I gotta say he was a fantastic baseball ambassador..He was always cool and signed autographs almost religiously..Not just a great pitcher,also a quality human being

[@hellyeah3871]

So true. I remember in 1984 my family traveled to Houston to watch Nolan pitch. He took the time so sign everything we handed him. Class act for sure

[@jimmccormick6091]

Saw his last game in Cleveland. He absolutely destroyed the Indians. As a matter of fact, he almost seemed bored in doing it. Watching it, my friends and I agreed, he could have pitched for a lot longer still…

[@danacoleman4007]

that is great to hear!

[@maxbolon3143]

@@jimmccormick6091 yeah if he didn’t blow his arm out I think he could’ve pitched more and possibly could’ve pitched 30 seasons But injuries are a part of sports which sucks.

[@cesarbardales2209]

Yo Cheddar cheese, Ryan made batters look like swiss cheese....facts

[@jameshar9592]

On May 2nd 1991 I was discharged from the Marine Corps after a 7 year stint. (honorably) the night before, May 1 1991 I watched Nolan Ryan toss the last of his 7 no-hitters. I was 27 at the time and remember watching Ryan as a 9 yr old in 1973. Truly fun to watch. As a Dodgers fan it killed me to find out Ryan set the record for no-hitters in 1981 against my Dodgers. I graduated Boot Camp a week later. Life was better with Ryan in it. Great video!

[@justinmathewson3692]

I think Nolan Ryan was the Brett Favre of MLB. You took the bad along with the greatness.

[@andrewrout8712]

Good comparison in so many ways

[@DrLuke49]

Nolan had to contend with a systemic lack of run support in more than one season with the 1987 season being exhibit A. The Astros idiot owner at the time also let the Ryan Express walk away to Arlington to sign with the Rangers before passing on a certain future Hall of Fame shortstop in favor of the immortal Phil Nevin in 1992. Derek Jeter and the Yankees are forever grateful for that blunder.

[@jameswenger511]

@@DrLuke49 He always followed the money. Greedy bastard didn't care about winning.

[@RobertMJohnson]

I think you mean Favre was the Nolan Ryan of the NFL

[@s1mo-RBC]

Good analogy.

[@treycranson]

I think Nolan Ryan stands out in our minds because he was nearly the best for four decades. While others came and went, he had staying power and performed at high levels his entire career.

[@sethtenrec]

Much like Henry Aaron, Pete Rose, and Cy Young himself. Longevity as their greatest characteristic.

[@jimburow706]

To play at that level for as long as they did was and is amazing. No steroids necessary

[@jennyanydots2389]

He was actually only good for like 3 of those years. The rest was cuz the league was rigged back then. After he turned 39 years old he could barely get the ball over 80 kilometers per 55 minutes... but cuz so many fans were stupid races they told errybody to make it seem like Colon Ryan was still a legit player when in reality he wouldn't even make an underfunded Mexican League baseball team. If he wasn't such races in public peeps wouldn't be all over his meat hog so hard.

[@MrMorrowman]

@@jennyanydots2389 you're out of your mind. And its BEATING...not beeting.

[@jennyanydots2389]

@@MrMorrowman You know about Ryan's involvement in that dawg fighting ring scandal? The one wear he got busted on tape beeting one of his fighting dawgs for losing a high stakes dawg fight... not a lot of peeps know about that... only the REAL fans know about the dawg fighting ring and dawg beetings.

[@taekwondotime]

The fact that he owns baseball records that will never be beat is proof enough of how great he was.

[@jimnfl7134]

Yes Awesome pitcher but on Teams that Sucked. Ken Griffey Jr had to know that too.

[@commiehunter733]

Ryan is the GOAT

[@aqgpandemic5406]

Burt Blyleven, talk about a pitcher who didn’t get his due at the time. Would’ve missed out on the hall of fame if not for advanced analytics and that’s just sad

[@urbangorilla33]

Yes, another guy who had the misfortune of playing on some mediocre and small market teams, though he was on World Series winners in Pittsburgh and Minnesota, and won a WS game with each. But he was below par in those years, and there was just never any hype over the guy.

[@jamie49868]

I always loved Burt "Be Home" Blyleven and that wicked curve. Had been on a few more decent teams, would have 300.

[@azathoth0820]

Bert.

[@SamtheBravesFan]

Say what you want about analytics, but I think it's helped us have a better understanding of most players. Everyone has their place, including guys like Steve Garvey.

[@howie9751]

@@urbangorilla33 Walter Johnson won 20-30 games with the last place Senators for ten straight years. Either you can win or you can't.

[@paulgottlieb]

Cary Grant never won an Academy Award. You can be great every year without being "the greatest" in any specific year

[@jeffw1267]

I always figured that the fact Kurt Russell doesn't have an Oscar is proof that the system is flawed.

[@edreed5571]

Ryan overrated

[@paulgottlieb]

@@edreed5571 Yes. somewhat. Those strikeouts and no hitters dazzle people. But the fact that he is overrated doesn't mean he wasn't good! He is a no-doubt Hall of Famer, just not in the very top tier

[@zeroinifnite5730]

Well Cary Grant wasn't a great actor so...

[@jimmydavis9639]

Hate him or love him, but nor did Tom Cruise ever win an Academy Award, although one of the highest grossing box office stars of all time, if not the highest. Judas Priest not in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, a true travesty right there for sure! I ask, is the world really a fair and even place in the Universe? I don't think so!

[@Smart-Towel-RG-400]

People like Nolan Ryan shows how important the right coach can be to a athlete

[@bryanlosen3262]

That wasn't coaching. It was pure God given talent.

[@Smart-Towel-RG-400]

​@@bryanlosen3262athleticism is useless if you don't know how to use it to the full advantage

[@Theorpo]

​@@bryanlosen3262he had plenty of it. But his Dominance above everyone else is something he puts to his hardcore workout technique that wasn't popular at the time because of risked injuries. Which might be why he didn't break down for so long.

[@ZestedVim]

Awards < Accomplishments As a boy raised by a hard working single mother Nolan Ryan means more to me than he'll ever know. His high cocked leg like a revolver's hammer sending a blazing fastball got me interested in sports, then the science of the game, and ultimately his Texas tough strength of character inspired me to be the kind of man I am. Now I raise my sons, one of which is named Ranger Ryan, to have the same integrity and grit that my mother and my hero taught me by their examples. Thank you Mr. Ryan.

[@wadelong9452]

Phenomenal video. As a fellow historian, I really enjoyed how you put this all together, from the context to the evidence to the conclusions. Solid scholarship here that shows how much love and passion you put into your work. I also really like your final decision on Ryan: neither a compiler nor a shooting star, but rather a phenomenon. Keep up the great work!

[@melsfa17able]

Nolan Ryan is my favorite player of all time. I read his auto biography when I was a kid. He didn’t gain arm strength from throwing papers because he used his left hand to throw the papers. That’s an old wives tale. As a fan of Ryan, I can understand why on any given year he didn’t win the Cy Young but to question whether or not he was one of the greatest is hard for me to imagine. I’m all for using numbers to objectively rank players as a means to remove bias. What sucks about the numbers is how subjectively fans enjoyed watching him. How the game changed. How he never really had a terrible year. How he conducted himself on and off the field. All of these things can’t be measured with numbers. You just had to be there and watch and know you were watching one of the greats.

[@richardallen2687]

I agree and I disagree. I saw Nolan Ryan pitcher on numerous occasions, b both on tv and in person. It is true, when you were watching him you knew you were watching one of the all time greats. But on the other hand, if you look at his stats, he never really put together an outstanding season where he was like 22 -6 with a 2.50 or better ERA. Those were the types of seasons you got from pitchers of his day. Ryan never won more than 6-games over .500 in a season, which is quite honestly unbelievable. he was 22-16 with a 2.89 ERA with the Angels in 1974 and he was 16-10 with Texas with a 3.20 ERA. Over his entire 27 year career, which is in itself amazing, he was basically a little over a .500 pitcher only winning 30 more games then he lost. He won 324 games but he also lost 292 games. Honestly, that really isn't that great as far as a won-lost record. His average season he was around a 14-13 pitcher. // He had a lifetime 3.19 ERA, while in today's game that would be astonishing, in the era of the 1970 - early 1990s, those are the numbers of a good pitcher, but quite honestly, not a great Hall of Fame pitcher. Part of the issue is his first four seasons he played with the Mets and they were actually pretty good when he played for them. But the Mets also had Tom Seaver and Jerry Koosman on their staff, and they were head and shoulders better than Ryan at this time. // As far as being a strikeout pitcher, he was probably the greatest pure strikeout pitcher of all time. But again, when he was on and had his good stuff going, there was no one better, hence all the no-hitters. Unfortunately when he didn't have his great stuff, he was more or less just an average pitcher, which is why his lifetime record was only 324-292.

[@23ofSeptember]

I heard he got his arm strength from throwing turtles on the family ranch.

[@twalker8020]

Llbhnnnmñkkkkkkknm0i

[@SalmanAli-hn2kt]

@@richardallen2687 i mean Pitcher Wins is Useless look at jacob De grom you can’t win a game as a pitcher but you can lose one for damn sure

[@richardallen2687]

@@SalmanAli-hn2kt what in the world are you talking about? DeGrom over the course of his career has an average season won/lost record of 13-9 with a 2.50 ERA. If he didn’t get hurt so often it would probably be around 15-10 which is fantastic.

[@gabe9346]

Everyone seems to know about his 7! no hitters, but he also had 12!!! one-hitters

[@howie9751]

Still he was THIRD all-time in losses and FOURTEENTH in wins. No hitter one day, loss the next.

[@gabe9346]

@@howie9751 Yep. Just like everyone knows he had the most strikeouts by more than 800, but he had the most walks by more than 900 too.

[@jackhuffman9313]

iam an astros fan and painfully remember some of those one hitters and even worse he lost those one hitters because our offense was shit

[@howie9751]

@@jackhuffman9313 But thry weren't shit for Mike Scott?

[@jwood6531]

@@gabe9346 maybe because he played for 27 years??

[@QueenEstherMovie]

I only saw Nolan Ryan pitch in person once, when he was with the Mets. They were playing St. Louis at Shea Stadium and Ryan came on in relief to face the great Lou Brock. My dad, sister and I were sitting in the 4th deck on the 1st base side, so I couldn't see the ball once it left Ryan's hand. I only heard the pop of the catcher's mitt and then, a split second later, saw Brock swing - and miss - three times. Good morning, good afternoon, good night. I'll never forget watching Lou walk back to the dugout shaking his head. Hard to believe Nolan never won a CYA.

[@nickhaines1079]

"Batter #1: Broken helmet" "Batter #2: Broken arm" "Batter #3: Broken spirit" ... Had to pause the video there for a minute or I wouldn't have been able to hear it over my own laughing.

[@urbangorilla33]

And batter #4 had to go back to the locker room to change his undies.

[@dgchristensen771]

The fear he instilled in people was precisely that, broken helmet, broken arm. Nobody, including Ryan, knew where the ball was going. Ryan is 2nd in career wild pitches to a guy who retired in the 19th Century. In fact, if you go to Baseball Reference career WP leaders, you will see a bunch of guys who played over 100 years ago and two modern era, Ryan and Niekro. I would love to see this historian compare Ryan and Niekro's numbers.

[@kevinW826]

If I remember correctly Randy Johnson scared the crap out of Kirby Puckett during one game. You could see the fear in his eyes. I can see why Nolan Ryan was capable of doing this on a regular basis

[@tomsta925]

It’s so funny when people don’t grasp how math works. Nolan Ryan- most seasons in baseball as a pitcher, Phil Nekro- most innings pitched. I wonder how they end up topping the leader boards for walks and wild pitches???

[@vestibulate]

The man was a physical phenomenon of the first order, and very fortunate in avoiding arm trouble. He had amazing stuff and was frequently overwhelming. But those bases on balls led to so many defeats. It's just too easy to blame his teammates. When Ryan was off, he could stink up the house. The greatest pitchers find ways to overcome those bad days, the days when you show up with nothing and still win.

[@fredleinweber2819]

@@devinlaheywho Maddux and Glavine too.

[@patotmaster7747]

Ryan failed to master other skills that go along with pitching, ones that can help a pitcher win more ballgames. He fielded his position poorly and was a horrible bunter, for example.

[@vestibulate]

@@patotmaster7747 I will never understand how a major league ballplayer can't learn how to bunt. Most don't even know how to hold the bat. Then they stab at the ball instead of just receiving it. It's pitiful.

[@philliplarose8570]

Correction to your closing statement on whether Ryan's records "will be broken." Most of Nolan Ryan's records are placed in the "Will never be approached" region of the record books. The game just isn't played like that any more, and they don't make pitchers out of the same stuff. (I'm assuming Beef Jerky, duct tape and Granite)

[@kinggremlin4574]

Correct, and the most unreachable record that Ryan owns is the one for walks. Ryan's 2795 career walks are 52.5% more than the pitcher in 2nd place all time with 1833. That's astonishing. The current active leader in walks is Jon Lester who is ranked 186th all time with 863. If Lester tripled his career total, he would still be 206 short. Coincidently, twice in his career, Ryan almost had 206 walks (202 and 204). Since 2000, the highest walk total for any pitcher has been 125 in 2000. If a pitcher walked 125 batters every season, it would take him until his 23rd season in the majors to pass Ryan.

[@rycolligan]

@@kinggremlin4574 You can get away with issuing free passes if you strand them there with strike-outs

[@rodneysmith247]

choo-choo the ryan express 🚆

[@Fly-The-W]

Cy young's is def the stat that will 💯 never be touched😂 MUCH different game then. But yeah completely agree with ya. I love how much the game has evolved but it's starting to get a little much. Hoping it doesn't mess it up

[@dollgen]

You're implying there's some deficiency in modern pitchers but what you're missing is that pitching today is much more difficult on the arm so it simply isn't possible to pitch as much as the greats of old

[@angny03]

Thank you so much for taking the time out to make this. It was very well thought out and put together. You def gained a fan/follower!

[@MrSpeed-lt8gr]

Kicking Robin Ventura’s ass may be the highlight of his career 🤣😂

[@nala3038]

No, throwing that last no hitter was the highlight of his career

[@mockingslur6945]

@@nala3038 at 44 year’s old

[@jcearnhardt393]

Not sure who's dumber, the idiot who made this statement or the 76 that gave it a thumbs up. Its obvious none of them have no idea who Nolan Ryan is. Nolan would whip anybody in the mlb the whole time he played in it. Nobody fkd with that man, he was a man amongst men.

[@christopherwood2290]

@@jcearnhardt393 Roger Clemens was terrified of Nolan Ryan.

[@bauerj3398]

When did he 'kick Ventura's ass'? If you mean that little dustup where Ryan delivered a series of noogies that would not have broken a robin's egg (pun intended), that was not even close to an ass kicking.

[@Rylopero]

For context, he started playing before Sandy Koufax retired, and retired after Derek Jeter was drafted

[@t-bo2734]

Ryan's last season was Pedro Martinez's first full season.

[@kencarson666]

it’s like he was avoiding the greatness of Derek Jeter just kidding btw

[@arthursmith6854]

3 innings pitched before Koufax retired.

[@deadlyoneable]

He also struck out McGwire, Bonds AND roger marris.

[@arthursmith6854]

@@deadlyoneable Three players with a total of 3868 strikeouts between them. So what's your point?

[@historicalsportsgoon8575]

From someone who's trying to do this game myself, I appreciate all your hard work. Cheers and you just got another fan.

[@mets137781]

Bill James in his updated historical Abstract really did a nice job of explaining this. From the Historical Abstract ""Ryan tried to throw unhittable pitches, one after another, even to weak hitters, even when he was behind in the count," James wrote. "The 'ease up and let the fielders do their work' software had never been installed on his machine. From the beginning of his career to the end, a Nolan Ryan game featured strikeouts, walks, and very few hits."" This lead to how his numbers worked and why there were so many no hitters but also has some baring on the w/l wasn't great. For all the good his approach did, and it did a lot of good, it had it's flaws. The difference between 1 and 2 in SO in nearly 1k for Ryan but it's almost the same in walks. He is 2nd all time in Wild Pitches, and lead his position in field errors 4 times. These kinds of things really nibbled at his overall game and is why when it came to others like Seaver and Clemens the numbers don't add up. As someone below put it he was kinda of the Three true outcomes of pitching. All that said he was an amazing pitcher and more importantly one of the most unique pitchers of all time. No one has ever tried his approach again and most if they did would never get as far his did. He is a deserving HOFer and truly a one of a kind pitcher.

[@chocolatte6157]

I saw him pitch in the Astro Dome in person when I was younger. He threw so hard that if a batter swung and missed, I looked out towards the field looking for the ball because I thought the batter hit the ball because of the crack of the ball hitting the mitt.

[@dannydonvito]

Ahh the classic Astro dome, miss those days

[@Rockhound6165]

I saw him pitch against the Phillies in the old Vet. I was sitting in the 600 level(2nd deck) in right field. Pretty far from civilization. I could hear his grunt all the way up there.

[@kevinpeake4636]

Jeez🤦🏿‍♂️

[@homedeezyfasheezy5662]

I could only imagine that sound inside of the ol’Astrodome. A lot of people love to rag on it but im part of the crowd that misses that place

[@gbail9566]

I went to Oakland specifically because Nolan Ryan was pitching that night, and I will always remember witnessing his sixth no hitter with friends and family. That kind of story is what makes him on of the greatest.

[@lonestarstate1981]

Awesome story. if you could elaborate and go back more to that day that would be great. What a historic night for baseball with the headliner being Nolan Ryan No Hitter.

[@gbail9566]

@@lonestarstate1981 It really was a last minute rally cooked up by me and my late uncle to get to the game. We just found out he and the Texas Rangers were in Oakland against the Athletics that night and decided that we should see him in his final season. My twin brother and girlfriend-now-wife joined us, and he started counting down outs from the first pitch. It was Ryan's 6th no hitter and occurred when the outfield seats were still cement risers before Al Davis installed the monstrosity, the Eastside Club, which many now call Mt. Davis in his infamy. I definitely consider seeing that foul ball caught down the right field line for the last out as a milestone in my life. We were heckling fans that left early and were rewarded for our efforts. It wasn't a big crowd attending that night, but we were appreciative. Neither the Athletics nor the Rangers were a big draw that season.

[@gbail9566]

@@lonestarstate1981 The attendance was much better in Texas later that season when Ryan threw his 7th no hitter.

[@jasondonatelli962]

Tainted legacy. This man admits to using Advil.

[@i_throw_ched289]

L O L

[@RAZORRAZE2K]

Bahahahaha

[@Sandler23]

He could always go another 9 innings!

[@keithcarlson7267]

Advil is gentler un mah stumick den aspren!

[@terrancethomas9792]

Voters love wins. 21-7, 22-8, 20-6…not 16-11. Nolan pitched most of his prime for the Angels of 70’s and Astros of the 80’s. Two teams Ryan should sue for run support. To explain the problem clearly, you can’t win 3-2 if your team isn’t scoring runs. One year Ryan led the league in ERA but his record was 8-16. The Angels were lousy. Pitching for a lousy team means your win-loss record will be bad. Take Jim Palmer. Baltimore scored runs. Palmer constantly had great W-L records. The Astros were good and then bad. They won two division titles (‘80 and ‘86) but in between horrible.

[@Just_Pele]

There are 2 pitchers that I would never want to face down, and those are Randy Johnson and Nolan Ryan. No others have intimidated so many batters, so thoroughly, over the course of their lengthy careers. THAT is why Ryan is great. No Cy Young Award? Whatever. As a starting pitcher, I'd take him over anyone else who's ever played the game (except maybe the Big Unit).

[@johnnyrichard6659]

Sandy koufax is better and when u say no just look up the stats

[@Just_Pele]

@@johnnyrichard6659 When did I say anything about who was "better"? 🙄

[@TheFragnatic]

@@Just_Pele AGREED

[@douglasraddi1428]

He was great. I'd have Maddux, the big unit, Koufax and Clemens

[@mormonmenace4152]

I mean if you want to put a bunch of guys on for free sure I guess

[@toordal]

I'm so glad you really focused on that 1987 season. I've been waiting so long for video on that season. One thing you missed was some sportswriter said that the Houston Astros hitting was so inept that they could've had batting practice in a china shop and not broken a thing. Did you ever hear that one? Another thing that you didn't mention working against Nolan Ryan winning the Cy Young that year was that fellow Astro Mike Scott had just won the Cy Young award the prior year with an 18-10 record, also a low ERA, and even more strikeouts. It was probably hard for writers to give. back to back Cy Young awards to Astros pitchers when their team was so bad, although they won the division in 1986.

[@JohnMeyer-b9p]

Nolan Ryan was like watching history in the making it was a truly amazing experience to see him pitching.

[@felixfromnebraska8648]

I ha always wondered why he never won the Cy Young. This video sheds light on it, but as you said, there has never been a pitcher more dominant for as long as he was. My favorite Player, Pitcher, and Man in the MLB. Thanks for sharing this video. Another story about Nolan Ryan. I took my son and his Japanese friend to a game in KC. They were playing the Rangers, and we were hoping to get a glimpse of Nolan at the game. He wasn't scheduled to pitch that day, but it didn't stop us from searching for him. Then it happened. We were staying at the Crown Center, where many of the MLB teams would stay when playing KC. We were standing in the lobby when all of a sudden, there he was, coming off the elevator. As he walked through the Hotel Lobby, a crowd formed around him, which seemed to be around 100 fans. He turned to the group and said let's take this outside to the bus, everyone. I told my son and Daisuke to run the gift shop and buy some baseballs. It turned out that they only had enough for one. As they ran out of the Hotel, the crowd had gone, and the door on the bus was closed. Their faces turned to sadness. I went up to the bus and knocked on the door. When the door opened, I looked inside to find Nolan sitting in the first seat. I explained to him that my son's Japanese friend would cherish a signed autograph from him. He immediately motioned his hand to bring him into the bus with the baseball. He had made a dream come true for that boy and a story for a lifetime. I shook his hand and thanked him for his kindness. Nolan had signed every fan autograph request by the bus before he shut that door that day. What a thrill that day was with smiles from ear to ear. Felix

[@longshot7601]

The funny part is that Robin Ventura career highlight was charging the mound on Ryan. He is credited with getting 7 hits at a single at bat. The picture of him in a headlock was on my wall for years.

[@thejoshpresle]

I mean, he also hit a walk off grand slam single in game 5 of the 99 world series, but go on I guess...

[@nickgorgone9619]

I worked for the Phillies from 1979 to 1983 above the visiting team bullpen. One night when Houston came into town, I was leaning against the railing over the bullpen. Not paying attention to what was going on down there. Then I heard a loud pop of a catchers glove and then another and another. It sounded like fireworks. I leaned over the rail rail and peered down to watch Nolan Ryan and JR Richard seemingly have a contest as to who could throw harder. One of the most enjoyable and memorable moments for a baseball fan who got paid to watch baseball. One minor correction to your story. It was Carlton who broke Walter Johnson’s career strikeout record, only to have Ryan pass him later the same season. Having watched Carlton pitch around 100 games live, he was better than Ryan and Seaver was better than both. Still Ryan was one of the greats of the game and pleasure to watch.

[@ikemancil3850]

I would take Nolan over either one.

[@Ref-er4lb]

I am a lifelong California Angels fan. A few years ago I heard or read somewhere that the most import stat of Nolan Ryan's baseball career is that at least 9 former teammates have named the children "RYAN" out respect for the man. My favorite Angels are Jim Abbott, Nolan Ryan and Rod Carew...... plus the others.

[@jeff2333]

I agree. Frank Tanana was another one I liked to see pitch as a kid if Ryan wasn't starting.

[@analcommando1124]

Why not name their kids Nolan?

[@dreuaustin]

I remember seeing Abbot pitch for the first time at Rangers stadium. I was so fascinated how fast he was able to flip his glove on and off.

[@kevinkosmatka7923]

Can’t believe this channel only has 11k subs. These videos are absolutely outstanding and tbh I don’t know half of what the statistics mean but hey I’m here for it!

[@One__Of__One]

he doesnt know what he is talking about. anyone can quote stats. he doesnt have perspective and he didnt see the players play.

[@kevinkosmatka7923]

@@One__Of__One yeah I can see that in his videos. It’s hard to understand how good a player was when you are looking only at stats. That being said, I kind of don’t agree with his views on Nolan Ryan, but everyone is entitled to an opinion and I enjoyed this video a lot man. But yes I get you, you have to see the players play in order to better analyze a player.

[@roberthess3939]

Thank you for an excellent job putting this video together. I really enjoyed it, and it made me reflect. In many ways, Nolan Ryan was a lot like Walter Johnson -- extremely fast, a lot of strikeouts but didn't get the run support that would have given him more wins. My dad, my nephew and I traveled to Cooperstown for the very first time the year Ryan was inducted into the BHOF. Lots of crowds, lots of cheering and when I listened to his speech, it was clear to me that he was one class act. Great memories!

[@GoldenSlumber474]

New subscriber here! That was a great analysis & I think you nailed the reason at the conclusion. I witnessed Ryan’s magic throughout his entire career & every year, he would compile his great stats on inferior teams but there was always one or two pitchers on better teams who would snatch the Cy Young award from him. I was floored when I learned from your presentation that he never won the award based on what I saw over the years.

[@chuckwest7045]

Ryan's teams had 15 winning seasons and 11 losing seasons. It's a myth that he pitched on weak teams.

[@GreatUSTreasureHunt]

Ryan led the major leagues in ERA (2.76) and Ks (270) in 1987. He also went 8-16....proving that baseball is truly a team sport. And sometimes, your team can lose the Cy Young for you. Because you just led the majors in ERA and Ks, and you only won a third of your games.

[@georgehenry76]

Too bad wins weren’t over rated back then.

[@analcommando1124]

Astros went 76-86 in 87. I was expecting worse like sub 60 wins. Did the offense just not try when Ryan was pitching?

[@MaddMan621]

Sounds a lot like degrom, except the media doesn't care about W/L anymore so he won

[@dgrblue4162]

Some out pitchers get huge run support and others dont

[@TBtheking405216]

Damn that’s a lotta 2-0 or 2-1 games

[@outofcompliance1639]

Listened to almost every game Ryan pitched when he was with the Angels. My favorite player.

[@rodneysmith247]

Me too. I lived in san diego and saw the games on ktla with Dick Emberg

[@rapid13]

Lean years with Autry as owner, buying bats past their prime and trading away pitching. Broke my grandma's heart every year. She lived walking distance to Anaheim Stadium and we used to go watch games whenever we stayed with her. Damned shame she didn't live long enough to see Sosh and the 2002 squad.

[@outofcompliance1639]

@@rapid13 Yeah, lots of HOFers and near HOFers came through the Angels at the end of their careers. They let Ryan go with many more years left. Frank Tanana was another good one they let go. The current Angels can't find enough pitching to even get over .500.

[@rapid13]

@@outofcompliance1639 Gene was smart about drawing a crowd, same as Moreno. And both refuse(d) to spend money on pitching.

[@aaron.0303]

Reminds me of when I was a kid in the 80s when my dad listened to MLB games on the radio.

[@chazworm3]

during a rain delay in the mid 80's the color commentator for the Reds, Joe Nuxhaul, taught Nolan Ryan the circle change. A pitch used by the Reds ace starter, Mario Soto. That conservatively extended Ryan's career many years.

[@jacksonwilliams6845]

Holy crap, man what a great video! I believe Ryan was one of the all time greats that transcends stats. Your channel is very underrated, keep up the great work! Amazing video!

[@zeroinifnite5730]

transcends stats? huh? he has amazing stats.

[@larrywhorley9440]

I saw Nolan pitch once, in Kansas City in the Bo Jackson era. Ryan struck him out 3 times if my memory is correct. The one and I think the main thing that isn't talked about, is his mechanics. He knew how to use his legs to get leverage on his fastball, his follow thru was perfect, never to one side. That his knees held up for such a long career is because of those mechanics.

[@pyrobryan]

My grandparents used to live in Texas a couple hours from Arlington. I tried to get my dad to take me to a Rangers game to watch Nolan pitch, but it never happened. I remember feeling like I was so close to watching greatness, but never getting the chance. Even at 13-14 years old I knew that getting to witness Ryan pitch in person would have been a special thing.

[@drijam2106]

I am so sorry that your dad didn't care enough about you to take you, what an ***hole!

[@kenbogert4224]

I saw him pitch on TV many times. Sometimes he was unhittable. And then other days he walked a lot of hitters. And sometimes he got hit hard. I don’t remember exactly why but later (as a pitcher myself) I discovered that it all depends upon the curveball-when throwing it for a strike-unhittable; fast fastballs get hit hard when they are predictable. Doc Gooden (remember him) was similar. So, a little bit inconsistent was a trait attributable to Ryan himself. But other than that, he was unlucky to play for bad or mediocre teams and that diminished his results and GREATLY influenced the voting. You just can’t win the cy young with a record of 8-16. Great video. Thanks.

[@johnguess2683]

I was at one of his games in 1987. He pitched nine innings, gave up one hit (a homerun) and lost 1-0. It was scary just watching him pitch from the stands.

[@RicardoAGuitar]

The closest match to your story was a 1-0 loss at home to Montreal. Ryan pitched 7 innings, striking out 9 and walking 3. He gave up four hits. The lone RBI by Tim Wallach was a single.

[@onliwankannoli]

Thank you for including the Robin Ventura butt kicking!!! One of my favorite moments not only in Nolan Ryan’s career, but in the game of baseball.

[@yankees29]

He grabbed Robin in a headlock and rode him like a steer.

[@jerry9535]

I was there that night. Best night ever!! 👈🏻🤣

[@yankees29]

@@jerry9535 seriously? That’s sick

[@SimpleSock]

Great video! Tons of info without meandering, definitely a cut above most of the baseball docs on KZbin.

[@jimmydee935]

I am SOOOO grateful for being born in the mid 70’s and being able to witness SO much greatness. Nolan Ryan, Prime Michael Jordan, Bird, Magic, Kareem…hell, all of those 80’s NBA battles and original Dunk Contests…Prime Tiger…86 Mets World Series and NYG Super Bowls in 86 & 90, and the NY Yanks dominance in the mid to late 90’s…not to mention a rookie Brady and how his career turned out. So many generational memories. And Nolan Ryan was an absolute BEAST, well into his 40’s. Amazing Oh yeah, and CAN’T forget Prime Tyson. Sheeesh. I am a lucky mofo. Lol

[@chrisdelisle3954]

My favorite pitcher of all time - I guess I am biased - hell yes, he was one of the greatest of all time!

[@Gnofg]

I'll take Seaver any day over Ryan.

[@joejankoski8471]

@@Gnofg And twice on Sundays.

[@howie9751]

Third all-time in losses, only 14th in wins. Hardly great.

[@dukeljk2191]

@@howie9751 well you don't have a clue.

[@ernestolombardo5811]

I was already a baseball fan when Ryan was with the Angels. The image was that of a quirky freak who threw lightning but you never knew where it was going - like early Randy Johnson. Then we were all shocked when he developed control - like later Randy Johnson. The parallels are genuine.

[@ILoveMisty1985]

It's probably no surprise that Nolan Ryan is often credited with helping Randy Johnson with the mechanical changes that led to him becoming one of the most dominant pitchers in baseball history. As the story goes Rangers pitching coach Tom House, a USC alumnus like Randy, invited the Big Unit to watch one of Nolan's bullpen session. Randy talked about his inability to throw strikes consistently, while the two veteran baseball men suggested that Johnson land on the ball of his feet instead of his heel. Randy made the necessary changes, and the rest as the saying goes, is history.

[@dgchristensen771]

Actually, when he stopped walking 150 batters a year, people had less fear standing in there against him and his numbers didn't change much. If you look at his walks per 9 innings, he was under 4.0 ten times (never under 3), 4.0-4.9 five times, 5.0-5.9 seven times, and over 6.0 five times. I would suggest his best years were when he was walking between 4 and 5 batters per game. Not so wild that he was bad, but wild enough to keep that fear in their heads. In 6 of the 10 years he was walking between 3 and 4 a game, his ERA was above his career average.

[@dgchristensen771]

This is a guy who once gave up 198 hits in a season but walked 204.

[@ernestpassaro9663]

Except randy Johnson was better 5 cy young’s to 0

[@ernestpassaro9663]

Ryan’s greatest yr never came close to johnsons or seavers or any of the all time greats

[@KJF-ny]

This is a fascinating look at Ryan's career. I was born in 1983, so I was aware of him in the final stages of his career, and it was always just accepted that he was one of the best to ever pitch in the game. I'd imagine a lot of his mystique is just word of mouth, and the self-perpetuating legacies that ballplayers wind up with. Taking an objective look at his statistics, it's actually a startling contrast to the image of him I had in my head. Even looking at stats traditionally considered important for pitchers Pre-Felix/DeGrom (Wins, ERA, CG, H, R, HR) he wasn't all that impressive in most years. His ERA relative to league average was markedly average in the overwhelming majority of his seasons. In 8 of the 11 seasons he led the leauge in K's, he also led the league in walks! As a staunch Mussina fan, and someone that considered him a Hall-of-Famer before most got on the bandwagon, it thrills me to no end to see his JAWS is higher than Ryan's. It's also hard to wrap my head around that with how highly Ryan holds a place in my "Baseball Greats" list. Wild video.

[@dgchristensen771]

People love pitchers who throw heat and Ryan certainly could. Now go compare him to a guy named Phil Niekro who pitched about the same time and also lasted a long time. The biggest difference is about 35 mph.

[@mockingslur6945]

This is a smear piece. I watched him growing up, and he was pretty amazing, and that wasn’t even near his prime. I’ve met him a few time’s and he’s a great ambassador of baseball.

[@KJF-ny]

@@mockingslur6945 It's not a smear piece, it's an objective analysis of statistics. Taking a step back like that doesn't account for aura and the reputation developed by fans at the time. When there was only a game of the week televised, and you'd see him pitch once a month I'm sure it was very exciting. I don't discredit him as a person, as an ambassador of baseball. I don't even really think of him any less of an all-time-great, I'm just more aware of the full picture of him now.

[@KJF-ny]

@@dgchristensen771 The best fastball in a generation and maybe the best knuckleball of all time. Both deserved inductees of the hall. It is nuts looking at pitching lines from thirty-forty years ago juxtaposed with todays. Number of innings pitched and batters faced in each season alone are astounding. There's some good research out there about the thrid time through the lineup being a thing even back that far, so a lot of these guys could have had even more impressive careers if they were taken out after five or six innings too.

[@someperson8151]

I lived in California in 1977 to 1980 and saw the Angels on TV a lot. Ryan was good. One year the Angels finally got it together and won the division. There's a reason why he was the FIRST million dollar player. When he had great stuff, it was hard to make contact with his pitches. He also had stamina and durability.

[@unclejj13er75]

Proud to say i saw Ryan gain his 4,000 K in the old Astrodome on a 2-2 breaking ball to Danny Heap of the Mets. Ryan also walked a lot of batters and could be inconsistent. That being said, 7 no-hitters stands as a testament to his dominance. When Ryan had his best stuff he was untouchable and no one was more dominating. Ever. Not even Cy Young himself. His place in the Hall of Fame is far more prestigious than what some egg-headed, nerdy baseball writers think of true athletes.

[@lesalbro8880]

Nolan was easily my favorite pitcher to watch back in the day. He was just spectacular, and you never knew what kind of amazing feat he would achieve in any given game. Having said that, you are definitely correct that Nolan was rarely, if ever, the BEST pitcher. Clearly his issues with walks, and usually having teams that were not very good behind him prevented that. In spite of this, I still believe he's one of the greatest pitchers of all time. For all of the strikeouts and walks and no hitters. For that amazing fastball and even his legendary durability. None of these are even his greatest exploit. No, that would be his unmatched consistency. Sounds a little boring for someone who is most known for the spectacular, but here we go. Nolan Ryan had 25 consecutive seasons with an ERA under 4. Eight times he had an ERA under 3, and only 7 times did he have an ERA over 3.50. He didn't just pitch a long time while occasionally doing spectacular things. He wasn't just must see TV because you never knew what might happen. He was consistently good and occasionally great for longer than all but a very few pitchers have even managed to remain on a roster. It's the combination of all this that him one of the best ever, and such a legend. No exaggeration, he would've won over 400 games pretty easily if had pitched for the caliber of teams many of the other greats pitched for.

[@blackfinjrblackfinjr3555]

I saw his last game he ever pitched in Seattle. Me and a buddy drove up there and I think he was 46 or something like that. Anyway, we both thought, with great certainty that we would see another no hitter. Well his arm blew out and we were still so glad that we drove up from Portland to see him. I remember the kingdoms being almost full that night. He was my favorite pitcher growing up by far.

[@morsemath41]

Loved this video! I grew up watching Ryan and always thought he was one of the greats. I have never really researched the stats, so this video put his career in perspective. I think the all-time walks stat really puts his career in perspective. Yes, he was dominant, but imagine what he would have done if he hadn't walked so many batters. Thanks for the time you put into each of these videos.

[@The-Dom]

'73, '81, '87 is absolutely insane. Guy had arguably 3 Cy Youngs 14 years apart.

[@oneshot8999]

I agree

[@christopherwood2290]

Ryan was 8 wins and 16 losses in 1987? You believe he should have won the Cy Young award? Lol!

[@One__Of__One]

no he didnt. he never won because he never deserved to win

[@alphabeta4028]

81' should definitely be Fernando Valenzuela... NO QUESTION!!!

[@thomasmule5869]

Pretty sure it's established that wins losses aren't always on the pitcher

[@jasonk5752]

Growing up I idolized Nolan Ryan. And this video summarizes a fantastic career and I completely agree that numbers aren't everything. He's simply the GOAT. And it will take a hell of a career pitcher to knock him out of that spot.

[@Keith-ym3lm]

amazing as always. I am very glad that we no longer take Wins into account when thinking Cy Young, well I'm happy but not nearly as happy as Jacob Degrom. It's crazy to think he wouldn't have a win if he played in the Ryan era.

[@libradawg9]

What's the last part you said?

[@murray1978]

I think Degromm is overhyped. He has only thrown 5 complete games in his career. He never goes longer than 7 innings.

[@Keith-ym3lm]

@@murray1978 so complete games is how you determine a pitchers worth? Come on, get out of here with that nonsense. In 8 seasons he has an ERA of 2.5 He led the majors in strikeouts 2 of his 8 seasons. That’s dominance.

[@murray1978]

@@Keith-ym3lm He averages no more than 6 innings. Number one pitchers should be able to throw complete games. I like Degromm but think he is overrated. Nowadays, pitchers of his ilk will never throw complete games. I laughed when I watched the MLB network when one of the analysts compared Degromm to Halladay. Halladay had a run of 10 years where he dominated against the Yankees and Red Sox plus threw over 75 complete games and won 150. Degromm is good but he needs a longer career to even compare to Doc.

[@nicholasbrown4109]

@@murray1978 Thats a strategy used by the team because bullpen arms are much better than they were in the past, what makes you think he cant go longer than 6?

[@HHHWLH]

Outstanding and fantastic cover of Nolan Ryan. Thank you! I simply just loved to watch him pitch. He had unbelievable passion for it.

[@mdfield1]

I grew up in Anaheim, California and in 1974 I took my wife my and daughters to see the Angels vs the Twins. The Anaheim Stadium seemed almost empty. They were the California Angels then & they were a losing team. They had 60 some wins with only a few games left in the season. Ryan did walk a bunch, as usual, but he struck out 15, the defense backed him up, and the won 4-0. I think it was his 3rd no-hitter.

[@djf750]

how many did he walk? No-hitters are over rated

[@raz1683]

@@djf750 Laughable

[@djf750]

@@raz1683 please explain...thanks

[@ig_a_rogerss23]

@@djf750 if they’re overrated then why don’t we see it often lol

[@djf750]

@@ig_a_rogerss23 You see 2 hit shutouts that may be better pitched. A walk is a hit...man goes to first just like a hit, and he possibly may have GOTTEN a hit if the pitcher threw them all in the strike zone Would you consider a no hitter good if they intensionally walked their best hitter 4 times instead of pitchi8ng to him? of course, not, and we DO see them often. Perfect games are rare, only 28 in MLB HISTORY

[@LDQBBQ]

I think a big culprit in him not winning a CYA was the fact that he simply walked too many guys during his era. That's not such a big deal now, but it used to be when pitchers threw more to contact.

[@dangreene3895]

Thats true once he learned control he had some great years , but there was always someone who had a better win loss record , but he was always a threat to throw a no hitter even in his forties

[@LDQBBQ]

@Philippians 44 you make a good point. Guys couldn't touch him a lot of the time.

[@selfdo]

There's that fine line between "Effectively" wild and just plain "wild" (thing, you make my heart sing...you WALK everything...). Especially when a guy throws some serious heat; it keeps a batter "noivus" to wonder if the next pitch is going to be a "heat-seeker" right at his SKULL!

[@selfdo]

@Philippians 44 In Ralph Kiner's era, a singles hitter drove a Ford, home run hitters (like Kiner) drove CADILLACS. Nowadays, even the guy riding the pine drives a Porsche, and the guy leading the league in HRs has at least two rides that Jeremy Clarkson reviewed on "Top Gear" (or now, the Grant Tour). So they all are swinging for the fences, because ever more, it's STILL where the money is at!

[@timothybrown5999]

This is his biggest issue. Most of his batters walked or struck out, meaning he’s at least throwing 3-4 pitches per batter. This drives up his pitch count and constantly puts pressure on the defense due to all the base runners. This means he can’t finish as many games and gives up more runs than he should. This is why over the course of his career his average season is 14-13 with 120 walks.

[@gravitronlocksport9925]

To answer your question, the best ability is availability. And that's why Ryan is easily among the top 5 to ever step on the mound. Ryan was among the best pitchers in the league for nearly 3 decades. Other than his first season where he only appeared in 2 games, he only had 1 season with an ERA above 4 (his last season when he was 46 years old and his arm was basically falling off). For comparison, Pedro had 2, Clemens had 6, and Maddux had 6. In 1990, as the oldest player in MLB, he led the league in SO, WHIP, H/9, and SO/9. And then followed that up with a sub 3 ERA year the next season at the age of 44. He may have never been far and away the best pitcher in the league for any single season, or for any couple season stretch. But he was always among the best among his peers for his entire career. And his peers range from Bob Gibson to Randy Johnson.

[@jcrbama]

Thank you; you perfectly explained what I was thinking as well. Add to it that he had the wow factor. Ryan lit up the radar gun like few others could and did it well into his 40's. I saw him pitch in person in Pittsburgh in the late 80's, when I was a kid. My dad got us tickets right by the third base dugout. You could hear him grunt when he pitched and you could hear the ball rip through the air. It was a spectacle that was best appreciated in person. That was a fastball that only a handful of people that ever lived could match. Maybe his peak was never as high as other pitchers, meaning he didn't win the Cy Young, but he was elite or close to it for longer than any pitcher that I can remember.

[@squierjoshyt]

He is not a top 5 to ever pitch. Most reputable sporting sites barely rank him top 20. Stop quoting his ERA, because although it looks good by today's standards, he was middle of the pack in the 70s and 80s other than a couple good years. Only 8 top tens in league ERA, compared to 11 for Maddux, in fewer seasons. Pedro had 8 top tens in 8 fewer seasons. Sure, he didn't give up hits, but he gave up a LOT of walks, which is even worse. Plus he couldn't keep runners on base, so a walk was basically a double. Throw in record setting wild pitches, and he was solely responsible for a lot of the losses he has.

[@JoeKnows44]

I really adore this video. Your conclusion is so wonderful. That you can balance what the stats say, with what the fans say, with what his contemporaries thought with what his legacy and impact on the game is, is brilliant. It's how we need to rank players across eras. By considering all the context. Acknowledging the good and the bad and ultimately discerning between the good, very good, great and the all-time greats.

[@ianforsyth9472]

Great analysis. There's an argument for Ryan winning the AL Cy Young in '77 as well. Always thought he & Blyleven were undervalued in the 70's due to mediocre W-L records. Pitchers don't win games, teams win games.

[@toilet_cleaner_man]

Him and Blyleven are two peas in a pod, both baffling workhorse pitchers pitching for terrible to mediocre franchise for a long time. Both of them are also criminally underrated by alot of baseball fans.

[@jamesanthony5681]

Teams win games, but pitchers give up hits and walks and can lose games. Ryan finished behind Lyle and Palmer. Palmer had a better w/l% in part because he gave up fewer walks that season, and his WHIP was better than Ryan's.

[@ianforsyth9472]

@@jamesanthony5681 True, Ryan was his own worst enemy but less important than baserunners allowed is whether they actually score, & in that category Ryan trumped Palmer with a better ERA & better ERA+ (along with a better FIP). He also had a higher quality start %, with less run support per game than Palmer.

[@selfdo]

Roger that. How many times did Ryan and/or Blyleven leave the game after throwing seven or eight innings, with a one or two-run lead, only to see the bullpen give it up? How many games did each pitch at least seven innings and gave up two or less earned runs, and still left "on the hook"? The last teams to have two 20-game winners in a season had them both in 2002; TWENTY years ago. The Boston Red Sox, who missed the playoffs anyway, and the Arizona Diamondbacks, who finished a few games ahead of the Giants in the NL West, who would win the NL pennant that year, the D-Backs bowed to the Cardinals in the NLDS. Speaking of the Giants, they had two 20-game winners in '93 (Burkett and Swift), and ALSO missed the playoffs, albeit with 103 wins, finishing one game out to the Atlanta Braves. Of course, that team had Barry Bonds with another of his many MVP seasons (46 HRs, 123 RBIS, .336 BA), and Matt Williams was no slouch, either, and most of the Giants on that team also had career years. The two 20-game winners were also backed up by one deep bullpen which included both the late Rod Beck (RIP, "Shooter") and Jeff Brantley. Ryan did also give up 321 HRs, which, believe it or not, isn't even close to the lead (Jaime Moyer, with HoFer Warren Spahn the most in the NL). One of them was hit by a Giant in his first major league at-bat...none other than Will "Nuschler" Clark.

[@richardallen2687]

@@toilet_cleaner_man both Ryan & Blyleven underrated? Are you out of your mind? They’re both in the Hall of Fame LOLOL

[@jtsholtod.79]

Ryan's ability to do way-above-average things for a way-above-average period of time is phenomenal. And as a statistician, I can tell you there are just some phenomena that can't be encapsulated by statistics.

[@jordanabehr]

He is the the Tom Brady of baseball

[@howie9751]

Never won ten games more than he lost in a year Third all time in losses and not in the top ten in wins. Important stats.

[@kevincornell1439]

@@howie9751 if he would have played for a better team and not chased the money it may have been a deferent story.

[@howie9751]

@@kevincornell1439 Mike Scott had a much better record than Ryan pitching on the same Astros tteam as he did. Look it up. Walter Johnson won more than 20 games (or 30) with the last place Washington Seantors for ten straight years.

[@kevincornell1439]

@@howie9751 if he played for a better team it may have helped him enough to get some cy young's. also if he would have thrown harder he may have been able to repeat a career like sandy Koufax. he set a pace and put up a record that might never be broken. baseball is a weird sport that doesn't count rings to determine the best but the numbers they contributed to the sport.

[@user-lo1bs4wp7j]

Glad I found this channel. My parents were at one of his no-hitters, I think the second to last, June 11, 1990. I tell people I'm named after him (Ryan), but that's a lie, haha.

[@dreuaustin]

I caught a foul ball in the 7th inning of that game!

[@jacquestaulard3088]

That was well done! Part of the mystique of Nolan Ryan was his laconic Texas personality, his fearsome power, and - when he was on - no one could hit him. The best thing about baseball fans is that there is always something to talk about, some issue needing evidentiaryproofs, or argue over trivia so fine that nearly no other person could understand where the motivation would come from. However, it did surprise me that Ryan did not win a Cy Young. That is why I got click baited into your enjoyable piece. I watched the whole thing and wonder what I possibly learned, if anything!

[@baronvg]

Maybe his was a perfect storm of compiler/longevity and (greatness) perception is reality. Because I’m 40 and I sure as hell think of him as at worst Top 10 ALL TIME pitchers. And yet, I look at his baseball reference page and it’s a lot of numbers, some good, some average and lots of years to do all that but 7 no hitters is ungodly and so is 5,000+ strikeouts.

[@howie9751]

Third all time in losses, not in the top ten in wins.

[@benkidd4954]

@@howie9751 wins and losses don’t mean anything though, cy Young is the all time leader in losses, does that mean he was bad?

[@howie9751]

@@benkidd4954 He was first in wins. Great winning percentage. Ryan, not so much.

[@benkidd4954]

@@howie9751 do you not think that degrom was good in his cy young seasons then because of his winning percentage? It has literally no bearing on the quality of a pitcher at all

[@One__Of__One]

27 seasons, 32 wins more than losses. thats the stat that defines ryan.

[@michaelbaucom4019]

Ryan was penalized in the 1970s because he played for a mediocre team( the Angels), in the 1980s, sportswriters HATED the Astros and Rangers...because they were from Texas...yes, politics and parochialism weighed into the voting too...and Fernandomania killed his chances in 1981

[@jaydubaic21]

He was also the third best pitcher of his generation (Seaver/Carlton) and walked too many people. This is an idiotic argument.

[@michaelbaucom4019]

@@jaydubaic21 and Ryan has more strikeouts and lasted longer than both of them...no, not third best, equal

[@mjisthegoat88]

@@michaelbaucom4019 Tom Seaver retired with a career ERA of 2.86. The last time Nolan Ryan had an ERA that low or lower was when he retired his fourth career batter faced. Nolan was special, but Tom Terrific was better beyond a shadow of a doubt.

[@michaelbaucom4019]

@@mjisthegoat88 keep living your truth buddy...

[@mjisthegoat88]

@@michaelbaucom4019 Keep pretending Nolan Ryan was as good as Tom Seaver, it’s a good laugh line for anyone who knows the game

[@dash4800]

Without even thinking I could have told you he didn't have a great record and never had a mind blowing ERA. It's the same reason Hank Aaron only got 1 mvp. They were consistent but never the best.

[@dgchristensen771]

Different world back then. No social media. Oscar Robertson averaged a triple double for about his first 10 years in the NBA but didn't play in a major media market. If he'd had the exposure people get today nobody would be talking about LeBron or MJ.. Ryan had a lot going for him; played on both coasts and in his home state. Aaron was in Milwaukee, I think that's somewhere between Chicago and Canada. Aaron scored 100 runs 13 years in a row, he hit over 40 HR's 8 times and 30 or more 15 times. He's the career leader in RBI, and he's the career total base leader by over 12 miles. Aaron's career numbers against Ryan come out very similar to his career numbers. Which says that Ryan was a pretty average pitcher to him. In 41 plate appearances, Aaron walked 4 times, struck out 4 times, hit 2 home runs and batted .324. As a Brave, he was 9 for 25 with a homer, 3 walks and two strike outs. At the end of his career as a Brewer, he was still 3 for 12 with another homer a walk and two more K's. Extrapolate those numbers over a season (multiply by 17) and Aaron would have 68 walks, 68 strike outs, 34 HR's, hitting .324 in 697 plate appearances against Ryan. His career numbers for 162 games are 69 walks, 68 strike outs, 37 Hr's, hitting .305 in 685 plate appearances. Ryan looks pretty run of the mill there.

[@michaelwheeler3782]

He lead the league in ERA, LOOK AT HIS RECORD

[@followthebrickroad6518]

Listen some great players are amazing but never THE BEST in a season. D wade / Isiah Thomas / John Stockton/ Drew Brees are all all time greats in their sports and never won Mvps

[@jeffw1267]

Unfortunately, Ryan wasn't that consistent if you look at the numbers. He had a LOT of mediocre seasons in the 80s and 90s. Putting him in the top 5 of the greatest pitchers of all time is ridiculous (Young, Randy Johnson, Walter Johnson, Clemens, Seaver, Maddux, Grove, and so on).

[@snowberrysalad]

@@dgchristensen771 Adam Dunn owned Kershaw his whole career too. Your point?

[@tb1974]

My son and I went to many Nolan Ryan games when he pitched for the Rangers. The expectation with every pitch was so intense that when you heard the grunt he made with every pitch a shiver would go up your spine just as you saw the batter's knees buckle as the ball smacked into the catcher's glove.

[@damonbeddingfield2958]

Greatest pitcher of all time taking his entire career into account and his lazer beam focus. When I watch him pitch I forget that there are thousands in the stands. Imagine the solace in his head prior to each pitch. That in itself separates a really good pitcher from a great one imo.

[@jmwmotorsporthobbies4498]

Except for 1969 he never played on great teams. The 80 and 86 Astros made the playoffs. So out of 27 seasons he saw the post season 3 times.

[@mcswain69]

Actually, the 79 Angels made the ALCS, Ryan pitched 7 innings in game 1, got a no-decision in the loss.

[@shaneschirmer5238]

In my estimation, he was that great. I think part of the reason he's viewed in a different light than, say, Tom Glavine was his power. He was that mythical gun slinger, throwing a triple digit torch. It's hard to have that same effect when your out pitch is a changeup. Throw in the Ventura incident, and you have a legend.

[@kendallevans4079]

I grew up in Anaheim in the 70's. I remember our starting rotation was Ryan, Bill Singer, Clyde Wright and Rudy May. Back then teams just had a bunch relievers, there weren't specialists yet, no set up guy, no closer. They would leave the starter out there hell or high water. Nolan often got close to 200 pitches per game win or lose!

[@danejurus69]

Who needs a Cy Young Award when you have 7 no hitters. Hehehe.

[@tommylabors]

yes sir, and over 5000 k's

[@ZippyDChimp-mr1tf]

Don Larson had a perfect game in the world series and never won a Cy Young either.

[@Kngdmio]

The 12 one-hitters are almost as impressive.

[@howie9751]

He was just better than a .500 pitcher. Never had a season where he won ten more games than he lost. Third all time in losses and not in the top ten in wins.

[@howie9751]

@@tommylabors MIke Scott won a Cy Young with the same Houston team Ryan was on. Ryan was 68-67 the years they were together and Scott went 71-46.

[@kristopherloviska9042]

Simple. For all his greatness, on any given individual year, there was at least one pitcher the voters thought had a better year.

[@mickeydrago9401]

And they did, Jim Palmer for sure when Nolan was number two

[@John-78]

He never had a cy young type year other than 1981. Especially for the era he played in when wins and losses were a bigger factor in Cy Young voting than now.

[@csnide6702]

Or won more games.......

[@OroborusFMA]

@@mickeydrago9401 Palmer was totally overrated. Put him on California and he never wins 20 games.

[@howie9751]

Greatness? He's the third losingest pitcher in MLB history, while not even in the top ten in wins. (14)

[@joeblow9657]

IMO he's like a stat compiler version of Bryce Harper, great at times but inconsistent relatively speaking.

[@BaseballHistorian]

That's a pretty interesting comparison, actually!

[@king_ltc_]

@Kevin L If you are throwing that fast, yeah it's pretty hard to find the strike zone. Most of his walks are from his Mets days. His Angels, Astros, and Rangers days were dominant in the zone.

[@dgchristensen771]

@@king_ltc_ 5 years with the Mets, 344 walks, 8 years with the Angels, 1302 walks, 9 years with the Astros 796 walks, 5 years with the Rangers, 353 walks. Clearly it was all Mets, a whole 12% of the total.

[@charliereed6235]

@@king_ltc_ he twice had 200 walks with the Angels. 99% of pitchers never even get 200 K's in a season.

[@SwayneIII]

lol... ok millennial millie

[@stolnpckup]

He was and still is my most favorite baseball player. I liked him so much. I went to Cooperstown to see him get inducted into the hall of fame.

[@laurelhill3505]

In an age when striking out was seen as the most embarrasing thing you could do at the plate, he amassed an incredible pile of Ks. With the upper cut swings of today and the balls-to-the-wall attitude at the plate, I wonder what his K record would be now? Also, the fascination with W-L record back then always troubled me. I never understood it, even back then. I still have people that point at Ryan's W-L record as if it is something he had control over.

[@daleftuprightatsoldierfield]

His K record would probably wouldn’t change much. Yes, strikeouts are much more common these days, but starters don’t pitch nearly as many innings as they used to, and while he still throws hard compared to today’s pitchers, the difference isn’t as big as it was back then

[@howie9751]

Walter Johnson won 20-30 games ten straight years with the last place Washington Senators. And Mike Scott's record on the same Houston club Ryan was on was markedly better. Either you can win or you can't.

[@MillionthUsername]

He threw a lot of high riding fastballs with some movement that were hard to hit, along with a pretty good curve to throw into the mix, so I think he would have similar results today. He was "wild in the zone" a lot, when he wasn't wild in general, so it's not like you could just wait for a perfect strike down the middle. I seem to remember so many late and desperate swings from hitters.

[@MrMorrowman]

You also have to admire his GM abilities. The Rangers went to the world series twice with him in the front office and the same for the Astros when Jon Daniel's forced Nolan out of Texas rangers office.

[@jennyanydots2389]

Not since he was found guilty of beeting his neighbors dawgs two times with a shovel over nothin' but a noise complaint... Colon Ryan ain't get no nevermind from me son!! No SIr no how boy!!!

[@Asshat237]

His lack of control kept him from consistently keeping runs off the board. It is quite simple. He had major negatives which severely blunted his impact.

[@dipren443]

Exactly. Ryan is still the career leader in walks. By nearly 1000 over the next guy.

[@respectedlocalgentleman7108]

The biggest issue was wins.

[@Bryanp1289]

His career era was 3.19 😂 pretty damn good

[@jasonwilkinson378]

That maybe a little exaggerated due to how long he played. I remember reading that his accuracy although not fantastic studies show that his accuracy was somewhere in the middle…in other words his accuracy was average at worse.

[@squierjoshyt]

@@Bryanp1289 Not against his peers. He only cracked the top ten in league ERA (not majors) 8 times in 26 years. That's not THAT impressive.

[@DrBeauHightower]

Great video!

[@rtosborne3]

He never won a Cy Young Award because he was never the best pitcher in his league. He was the hardest to hit, struck out the most, but also walked by far the most and pitched in an era with a lot of great pitchers. Being hard to hit and striking out a lot of batters does not make a pitcher great, there is a lot more to pitching.

[@kingcassius2586]

Amen

[@danmason6116]

Thank you

[@Skank_and_Gutterboy]

Yep, and there's a lot of things that stats don't measure. The number of batters struck out and walks doesn't tell the full story, it's also important WHEN you do it and how you react when your team is behind and you've gotta get it back. You could have all kinds of great strikeout stats, fielding percentage, and a killer ERA but no team is going to keep you if you're always giving up a game-winning home run. That's just another hit in the stats but no front office is going to look at it that way!

[@puckerings]

@@Skank_and_Gutterboy ...and since they're not measured, you have no evidence that Ryan was any better or worse at any of these things. So it's entirely irrelevant to the discussion. It was very difficult to take Ryan deep so you're just throwing words out that have nothing to do with him.

[@puckerings]

Very strong argument that he was, in fact, the best pitcher in the NL in 1981, but the voters were obsessed with wins so he finished fourth. No way should he have finished fourth in that voting, even if you think the fact that Valenzuela's innings gave him an advantage. Voting Seaver higher than Ryan in 1981 was asinine. Talk about there being more to pitching than strikeouts - Ryan gave up two home runs in 149 innings in 1981. TWO. That's more than just being "hard to hit." And at that point in his career he had gotten the walk totals under control.

[@jamesklein2191]

His Achilles heel was an incredible amount of walks. Would have been the best pitcher ever if he had control.

[@bradleytravis2688]

His lifetime era over 26 seasons was under 3.20, therefore his walks were irrelevant compared to his teams inability to score runs

[@dgchristensen771]

@@davestephens3246 that's what put fear into batters. If they knew he'd throw the ball over the plate, there'd be a lot less intimidation going on. He deemed it an asset, but it kept him from being great. Koufax decided to sacrifice speed for control and then the 1960's happened for him.

[@dgchristensen771]

Here's a stat for you. In 26 years (we won't count 1966), Ryan only lead his team, that's right his teammates, in wins 7 times.

[@dgchristensen771]

@@bradleytravis2688 Here's another stat for you. 11 times in those 26 years Ryan had a worse winning percentage than his team.

[@jeffw1267]

His control did improve as he got older though he still wasn't an all-time great.

[@acornsucks2111]

In his Prime, Randy Johnson was likely the most dominant for a decade.

[@nineteeneightynine432]

Randy Johnson over Ryan and day just as dominate but with less walks.

[@murray1978]

Doc Halladay had a pretty dominant run pitching for the Jays in the 2000s. He would throw at least 8 complete games a season plus he was injured in July 2005 when he was dominant and probably would have won another Cy Young Award.

[@jamie49868]

It's just luck to have your 10yr run contained in a particular decade. Most guys prime stretches over parts of 2. Johnson's 10's stand alone for a single "decade", but I will mention Bob Feller and the 40's...he missed 4yrs to WWII, still won 140 along with every K title when he pitched the whole year, and probably missed 20 shutouts to add to his 52.

[@megawhitesox0574]

ryan; seven no hitters 12 one hitters ! case closed

[@dgchristensen771]

@@megawhitesox0574 292 losses. Nobody else in the last 110 years of baseball has that many. Case closed.

[@ileon91]

Your youtube channel is excellent, I really like it. It would be great to have a video about Johan Santana. I think he has one of the best pitchers in the 2000s and deserves a place in The Hall of Fame. His career was short, but outstanding. The fact the voters gave Bartolo Colon (a known performance-enhancing drugs user) the 2005 Cy Young award that Santana clearly deserved.

[@JessmanChicken86]

Only 10k subs?! I assumed you had around 100k. This is a greater travesty than Nolan Ryan never winning a Cy Young.

[@howie9751]

He never won ten games more than he lost in a year. Why would he win a Cy Young?

[@Ancient_Road]

@@howie9751 because cy young awards is an individual award where wins are a measure of the team

[@howie9751]

@@Ancient_Road Point? Walter Johnson won more than twenty games (or 30) for the last place Washinton Senators for ten straight years. That's a great pitcher.

[@Ancient_Road]

@@howie9751 I thought the point was pretty clear but i'l spell it out. nolan ryan or any pitcher is only in control of holding the other teams runs as low as possible, if his team scores 0 runs its literally impossible to get a win.. a pitcher could have a 200 innings pitches with a 0.01 era and no wins is he not the best pitcher in the world? so theoretically nolan ryan could've had 0 wins and still been the best pitcher on the planet. Especially in baseball wins are a measure of the team success not one individual where the cy young award is based on the individual performance of the pitcher

[@howie9751]

@@Ancient_Road A pticher goes 10-10. In the ten wins he givers up no runs. In the ten losses he gives up four runs a game. ERA? 2.00. So he's a great pitcher? Again, Walter Johnson won 20-30 games with the last place Washington Senators ten straight years. Ryan had a lot of spectaculars but Mike Scott won a Cy Young with same team Ryan was on. The rest are excuses.

[@hattorihanzo2275]

The people believe. His common Topps cards hold value. I consistently lose bids on them. The Ryan Express is a legend.

[@jeffw1267]

This, of course, measures Ryan's popularity and not his pitching ability.

[@moniphil]

In 1987: Nolan Ryan pitched 17 games at home, had an ERA of 2.21, pitched 114 innings, allowed 79 hits, had 28 earned runs, 30 runs, and 4 home runs, walked 38 batters (2 intentionally), threw 2 wild pitches, hit batters 2 times, and balked 2 times. On the road, Nolan Ryan pitched 17 games, had an ERA of 3.43, pitched 97.2 innings, allowed 75 hits, had 37 earned runs, 45 runs, and 10 home runs, walked 49 batters (0 intentionally), threw 8 wild pitches, hit batters 2 times, and balked 0 times. Roger Clemens pitched 20 games at home, had an ERA of 2.75, pitched 160.1 innings, allowed 130 hits, had 49 earned runs, 53 runs, and 12 home runs, walked 38 batters (1 intentionally), threw 0 wild pitches, hit batters 4 times, and balked 1 times On the road, Roger Clemens pitched 16 games, had an ERA of 3.27, pitched 121.1 innings, allowed 118 hits, had 44 earned runs, 47 runs, and 7 home runs, walked 45 batters (3 intentionally), threw 3 wild pitches, hit batters 5 times, and balked 2 times.

[@gabrielrockman]

70 innings pitched is a huge difference.

[@moniphil]

@@gabrielrockman But so is the difference in their ERAs.

[@gabrielrockman]

@@moniphil No, a 0.24 difference in ERA is not huge.

[@moniphil]

@@gabrielrockman Sorry. You’re right. I looked at the numbers wrong. But Ryan didn’t cheat. 🙃

[@mauricecummings6979]

This was really good and I enjoyed it very much. I grew up watching Nolan Ryan. There's no stat that measure will and heart. One of the greatest! Period.

[@paulwilliams7103]

What separates Nolan Ryan more than any other pitcher is his longevity.