WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.280 --> 00:00:01.040 Dot Org. 2 00:00:06.000 --> 00:00:10.880 KCAA is your CNBC News affiliate where the station that 3 00:00:11.400 --> 00:00:13.039 gets down to business. 4 00:00:16.000 --> 00:00:18.679 The views and opinions expressed by individuals on the following 5 00:00:18.719 --> 00:00:22.039 program do not necessarily reflect those of the network, Guys 6 00:00:22.120 --> 00:00:26.679 Guy Radio and its platforms. 7 00:00:28.280 --> 00:00:29.879 It's Guys Guy Radio. 8 00:00:33.119 --> 00:00:36.240 Here's your host, Robert Manny. 9 00:00:37.280 --> 00:00:40.679 Welcome to Guys Guys Radio. This is your host, Robert Manny, 10 00:00:40.840 --> 00:00:43.960 welcoming you to the show where men and women can 11 00:00:44.000 --> 00:00:47.320 be at their best and everyone wins. Guys Guys Radio, 12 00:00:48.079 --> 00:00:52.000 We're here to inform you, inspire you, empower you, and 13 00:00:52.119 --> 00:00:55.439 get you to think, feel, and who knows, maybe even 14 00:00:55.479 --> 00:00:59.640 act by virtue of the journeys, stories, experiences and insights 15 00:01:00.039 --> 00:01:02.000 of the guests I bring you each and every week 16 00:01:02.039 --> 00:01:04.799 to the show. And once again this week is no exception. 17 00:01:05.040 --> 00:01:08.280 Today we're going to talk about that major league in sports, 18 00:01:08.280 --> 00:01:12.079 an American institution known as Nolan Ryan. And our special 19 00:01:12.120 --> 00:01:15.480 guest is Tim Brown, who wrote in a fabulous toe 20 00:01:15.519 --> 00:01:19.400 about Nolan Ryan simply called Nolan the singular life of 21 00:01:19.400 --> 00:01:23.120 an American original. And you know, Nolan Ryan, folks, was 22 00:01:23.159 --> 00:01:27.560 a hero to two of America's biggest institutions, Texas and 23 00:01:27.680 --> 00:01:31.799 Major League baseball. He played longer, throw harder, and amassed 24 00:01:31.840 --> 00:01:35.879 more pitching records fifty three to be exact, than anyone 25 00:01:36.159 --> 00:01:39.680 before or since. And as he did, Nolan, Ryan came 26 00:01:39.719 --> 00:01:44.200 to represent what was exceptional exceptional about a game when 27 00:01:44.200 --> 00:01:47.760 it was still America's pastime. You know, veteran baseball journalist 28 00:01:47.799 --> 00:01:50.239 New York Times bestselling author Tim Brown, who's here today. 29 00:01:50.239 --> 00:01:54.400 He provides a definitive biography in his book, Nolan, and 30 00:01:54.439 --> 00:01:56.840 we're going to talk all about that and really what 31 00:01:57.079 --> 00:02:00.599 made Ryan such a dominant and feared pitcher and what 32 00:02:00.719 --> 00:02:03.719 lessons can we learn from his amazing career and life. 33 00:02:04.040 --> 00:02:05.920 What you don't have today is you don't have the 34 00:02:05.959 --> 00:02:08.280 pictures throwing the amount of innings and the amount of 35 00:02:08.319 --> 00:02:11.000 strikeouts that Ryan did back then. You've got some great 36 00:02:11.000 --> 00:02:14.000 pictures right now, but he was kind of stood out 37 00:02:14.039 --> 00:02:18.560 on his own along with guys like Sandy Kofax and 38 00:02:18.599 --> 00:02:19.639 Bob Gibson and. 39 00:02:21.400 --> 00:02:22.080 Don Sutton. 40 00:02:22.280 --> 00:02:24.199 Was a very crafty pitcher who pitched a lot of 41 00:02:24.199 --> 00:02:25.960 innings in a long time. Also, we're going to get 42 00:02:25.960 --> 00:02:28.400 into all of that and more on today's Guys Guys Radio. 43 00:02:28.400 --> 00:02:30.000 We're going to talk about baseball. We're going to talk 44 00:02:30.400 --> 00:02:33.280 about Nolan Ryan and all the lessons we can learn 45 00:02:33.319 --> 00:02:37.000 from his wonderful career with sports writer Tim Brown. 46 00:02:37.639 --> 00:02:39.199 It's Guys Guy Radio. 47 00:02:40.800 --> 00:02:43.879 Okay, guys, guys Radio. It is the interview portion of 48 00:02:43.919 --> 00:02:47.439 our show. And let's start with a question. What made 49 00:02:47.520 --> 00:02:50.879 Nolan Ryan's fastball so dominant? And could any pitcher in 50 00:02:50.879 --> 00:02:54.439 today's game match his combination of power and endurance. Well, 51 00:02:54.439 --> 00:02:56.599 we're going to talk about that today on Guys Guys 52 00:02:56.719 --> 00:03:00.039 Radio with our special guest, sports writer Tim Brown. On 53 00:03:00.199 --> 00:03:03.120 Tim's covered baseball out in LA for more than thirty years. 54 00:03:03.120 --> 00:03:06.400 He's written to New York Times bestseller's The Phenomena with 55 00:03:06.560 --> 00:03:10.120 Rick and Keel and Imperfect with the One Arm Jim Abbott, 56 00:03:10.120 --> 00:03:12.240 who threw a no hitter for my New York Yankees. 57 00:03:12.520 --> 00:03:14.719 He also wrote the Tao of the Backup Catcher. I 58 00:03:14.719 --> 00:03:16.800 love the name of that book. I gotta search it out, 59 00:03:16.960 --> 00:03:20.000 And in twenty sixteen he was awarded first place in 60 00:03:20.080 --> 00:03:24.360 Beat writing by the Associated Press Sports Editors. Welcome to 61 00:03:24.479 --> 00:03:27.680 Guys Guys Radio, Tim Brown. We're going to talk about 62 00:03:27.719 --> 00:03:30.280 Nolan Ryan today. Here's the new book. It just came out, 63 00:03:30.400 --> 00:03:33.919 the Singular Life of an American Original and he sure is. 64 00:03:35.919 --> 00:03:38.719 Welcome to the show, Tim Robert, thanks for having me. 65 00:03:38.759 --> 00:03:41.360 How are you today, I'm doing fantastic And I gotta 66 00:03:41.400 --> 00:03:44.439 tell you, I just finished the book and wow, he's 67 00:03:45.120 --> 00:03:49.080 Nolan Ryan's a mythical kind of legendary man's man. He's 68 00:03:49.120 --> 00:03:52.360 like the John Wayne of baseball, and he must have 69 00:03:52.400 --> 00:03:55.520 been a very interesting Everybody has a story. 70 00:03:55.240 --> 00:03:56.560 About him, it seems like. 71 00:03:56.680 --> 00:03:59.960 And there's nothing that one thing that sticks out except 72 00:04:00.159 --> 00:04:03.319 for he's like the Rolling Stones. He's got longevity and 73 00:04:03.360 --> 00:04:06.879 he maintained his quality right through his I was it 74 00:04:06.960 --> 00:04:09.840 twenty seven years or so in Major League Baseball, just 75 00:04:09.960 --> 00:04:13.759 absolutely amazing. Tell us about your just first take on 76 00:04:13.840 --> 00:04:15.759 Nolan Ryan after writing the book. 77 00:04:16.399 --> 00:04:21.240 Well, I'll start at the beginning. I was seven years 78 00:04:21.279 --> 00:04:24.360 old living in White Plains, New York when the Mets 79 00:04:24.439 --> 00:04:28.000 won the nineteen sixty nine World Series. That's a very 80 00:04:28.079 --> 00:04:33.160 vulnerable age as a sports fan, and therefore I was 81 00:04:33.199 --> 00:04:35.160 saddled with being a Mets fan for the rest of 82 00:04:35.160 --> 00:04:38.560 my life. Now, before you feel too sorry for me, 83 00:04:38.920 --> 00:04:42.040 remember who won the Super Bowl that year, and that 84 00:04:42.199 --> 00:04:44.160 was the New York Jets. So I've been lugging that 85 00:04:44.240 --> 00:04:47.319 around as well. But that was my and I felt 86 00:04:47.360 --> 00:04:51.079 like as I was thinking about Nolan as a subject, 87 00:04:51.279 --> 00:04:54.079 it occurred to me that for half of my life 88 00:04:54.800 --> 00:04:56.879 he was a pitcher, and I was aware of him 89 00:04:56.959 --> 00:05:00.600 as a pitcher. I grew up with Nolan Ryan. You're right, 90 00:05:00.879 --> 00:05:05.639 this mystique, this guy who was there every year, this 91 00:05:05.759 --> 00:05:09.680 guy who was a power pitcher into well into what 92 00:05:09.720 --> 00:05:12.480 we would we would have considered middle age at the time, 93 00:05:12.920 --> 00:05:17.639 and I just thought, you know, he was unique when 94 00:05:17.680 --> 00:05:21.839 he pitched, and the further we get from that, it 95 00:05:21.959 --> 00:05:27.120 becomes almost unfathomable what he did. And I think my 96 00:05:27.680 --> 00:05:31.959 duty was to remind people that there was a way 97 00:05:32.079 --> 00:05:35.360 the game was played and there was a type of 98 00:05:35.480 --> 00:05:38.639 person who played it for a very long time. And 99 00:05:39.360 --> 00:05:43.399 while things have changed, those numbers that you might look 100 00:05:43.480 --> 00:05:47.759 up on Baseball Reference and look down on all these 101 00:05:47.839 --> 00:05:51.759 columns and how they end in fifty some records by 102 00:05:51.800 --> 00:05:56.319 the time he retired, were real. These things actually existed, 103 00:05:56.360 --> 00:05:58.920 that a game was played at a certain time in 104 00:05:58.959 --> 00:06:02.279 a certain era that looked like this. It wasn't by 105 00:06:02.319 --> 00:06:05.759 the way. I mean, he may have been unusual for 106 00:06:05.839 --> 00:06:07.959 the longevity part of it, but there were a lot 107 00:06:08.000 --> 00:06:10.959 of pitchers then who were throwing two hundred and eighty 108 00:06:11.040 --> 00:06:16.680 three hundred innings, who you know were through hard, who 109 00:06:16.959 --> 00:06:19.639 made forty some starts in the year, who pitched on 110 00:06:19.720 --> 00:06:24.560 four days rest. And as my as I got a 111 00:06:24.600 --> 00:06:26.959 bit older over the past say ten years or so, 112 00:06:28.160 --> 00:06:32.720 I would watch starting pitchers come off the mound with 113 00:06:32.800 --> 00:06:34.720 an out in the sixth inning and tip their cap 114 00:06:34.839 --> 00:06:38.480 to an adoring crowd. Or I would watch no hitters 115 00:06:38.839 --> 00:06:41.600 die not in the batter's box, but on the manager 116 00:06:42.079 --> 00:06:43.920 on the top step of the dugout, or in the 117 00:06:43.959 --> 00:06:49.000 GM's office, or god forbid, in the analytics room, and 118 00:06:49.199 --> 00:06:52.600 I would mutter to myself, where have you gone, Nolan Ryan? 119 00:06:52.959 --> 00:06:56.720 You know? And I think one day I just got 120 00:06:56.800 --> 00:06:59.680 in my car and drove to Texas to find Nolan 121 00:06:59.759 --> 00:07:01.959 Ryan and tell. 122 00:07:01.839 --> 00:07:04.600 Us about that journey, because he's not an easy guy 123 00:07:04.680 --> 00:07:07.079 to find. As we were kind of briefly chatting before 124 00:07:07.120 --> 00:07:09.519 the show, I noticed that, wow, I didn't since there 125 00:07:09.600 --> 00:07:11.839 was a lot of and it's got everything. The book 126 00:07:11.879 --> 00:07:14.199 is great, and it's really well written. It's got everything 127 00:07:14.240 --> 00:07:17.639 about Nolan Ryan and so many anecdotes and great stories, 128 00:07:17.639 --> 00:07:20.800 and you really nail who he is. However, part of 129 00:07:20.800 --> 00:07:23.759 who he is is He's not that accessible. So when 130 00:07:23.800 --> 00:07:26.600 you went on your journey to Texas to find Nolan Ryan, 131 00:07:26.639 --> 00:07:28.279 I'll bet it wasn't easy. 132 00:07:28.600 --> 00:07:35.480 Right, You're absolutely right. So honestly, the journey was to 133 00:07:35.600 --> 00:07:39.439 find the idea of Nolan Ryan, the notion of Nolan Ryan. 134 00:07:39.759 --> 00:07:44.160 So I went to this little town forty miles south 135 00:07:44.199 --> 00:07:47.879 of Houston called Alvin, and I spent three weeks there 136 00:07:48.199 --> 00:07:53.360 learning about the how and the why. And that was 137 00:07:53.399 --> 00:07:57.639 what was important to me was what sort of place 138 00:07:57.879 --> 00:08:03.800 produces a man, pitcher, an athlete, a ballplayer like Nolan Ryan. 139 00:08:04.839 --> 00:08:07.680 What were the values there? What did it feel like here? 140 00:08:09.720 --> 00:08:15.160 Why did he commit himself to this craft like no 141 00:08:15.199 --> 00:08:17.519 one else in the history of the game. Who was 142 00:08:17.600 --> 00:08:21.519 this person? And I feel like it had to start 143 00:08:22.240 --> 00:08:26.199 in this little town where you learn who are your 144 00:08:26.279 --> 00:08:28.920 role models, what are your values? What's important to you? 145 00:08:29.720 --> 00:08:33.000 How hard are you going to work for this? And 146 00:08:33.799 --> 00:08:37.279 I did find that and I began to understand as 147 00:08:37.360 --> 00:08:42.519 much as an outsider could, particularly with Nolan's dad. You know, 148 00:08:43.039 --> 00:08:46.600 Nolan was the youngest of six kids. Four of his 149 00:08:46.720 --> 00:08:51.919 older siblings were girls. And what was important to Nolan's father, 150 00:08:52.399 --> 00:08:57.840 Lynn Nolan Ryan Senior, was putting those four girls through college. 151 00:08:57.919 --> 00:09:01.559 And the way he did that was to hold two jobs. 152 00:09:01.960 --> 00:09:04.320 He worked in the oil field. During the day. He 153 00:09:04.360 --> 00:09:07.120 would come home, eat dinner, go to bed, sleep for 154 00:09:07.159 --> 00:09:12.200 several hours, get up at twelve thirty am, and deliver 155 00:09:12.320 --> 00:09:15.879 newspapers into the morning, come home, have breakfast, and start 156 00:09:15.919 --> 00:09:22.320 all over again. And I don't think as a boy, 157 00:09:23.000 --> 00:09:26.120 you watch this person, this person who's so important in 158 00:09:26.120 --> 00:09:30.039 your life, commit to something like this over many many 159 00:09:30.159 --> 00:09:34.279 years and not grow up with those same sort of 160 00:09:34.639 --> 00:09:37.200 that same sort of work ethic, those same sort of values, 161 00:09:37.279 --> 00:09:40.600 those sense of decency about being responsible for other people. 162 00:09:41.639 --> 00:09:45.440 Where where the important things in your life are taking 163 00:09:45.480 --> 00:09:50.000 care of your family, representing well, going to church on Sundays. 164 00:09:50.200 --> 00:09:52.480 It was all of these things. And that's what I 165 00:09:52.559 --> 00:09:56.440 found there, which was in the moment, of course, you know, 166 00:09:56.919 --> 00:09:59.399 to go back to your original question, I knew that 167 00:09:59.440 --> 00:10:03.720 Nolan was out there. The family was somewhat reluctant to 168 00:10:03.720 --> 00:10:06.519 speak to me out of the gate, because they don't 169 00:10:06.600 --> 00:10:10.000 just jump in on every project that crosses their desk. 170 00:10:10.879 --> 00:10:13.279 But I think, over a couple of years, doing all 171 00:10:13.320 --> 00:10:17.600 the research, talking to all the people that I and 172 00:10:17.639 --> 00:10:19.600 I hesitate to use this word because I don't want 173 00:10:19.639 --> 00:10:21.159 to put words into their mouths. But I think I 174 00:10:21.279 --> 00:10:25.519 earned my time with them toward the end of the 175 00:10:25.559 --> 00:10:28.559 research process where they invited me down to where they 176 00:10:28.559 --> 00:10:33.360 live now, which is outside Round Rock, Texas. And you know, 177 00:10:33.480 --> 00:10:36.159 I think you know, Nolan asked me, he goes, why 178 00:10:36.159 --> 00:10:39.360 are you doing this? I said, because I'm curious. And 179 00:10:40.120 --> 00:10:42.879 that's really the beginning and the end of it was 180 00:10:43.159 --> 00:10:49.279 this great curiosity about this ballplayer and growing old and 181 00:10:50.399 --> 00:10:54.480 you know, looking back over his shoulder on a lifetime 182 00:10:54.600 --> 00:10:58.759 spent in pursuit of all these things we just talked about. 183 00:10:59.039 --> 00:11:03.000 Wow, Okay, guests on Today's Guys Guys radio sports writer 184 00:11:03.159 --> 00:11:06.679 Tim Brown the book Nolan, The Singular Life of an 185 00:11:06.679 --> 00:11:10.279 American Original, and he sure is. So I've got a 186 00:11:10.320 --> 00:11:12.480 lot of questions about kind of the where he is now, 187 00:11:12.480 --> 00:11:15.159 But let's start at the beginning. How did he discover 188 00:11:15.639 --> 00:11:18.480 like baseball and how did they discover him that, like, Wow, 189 00:11:18.519 --> 00:11:20.679 this guy's got a special arm right. 190 00:11:21.000 --> 00:11:30.279 Well, I think the great backstory is that Nolan's older siblings, 191 00:11:30.279 --> 00:11:32.159 five of them. He had one brother as well as 192 00:11:32.200 --> 00:11:36.279 the four sisters. We're all brilliant in school. Honor roll 193 00:11:37.399 --> 00:11:41.960 straight A's school was easy for them, and Nolan had 194 00:11:42.039 --> 00:11:46.759 dyslexia and he struggled at school. So you're walking into 195 00:11:46.759 --> 00:11:49.799 the same school, down the same hallways, into the same classrooms, 196 00:11:49.799 --> 00:11:53.600 in front of the same teachers, and suddenly you're not 197 00:11:53.879 --> 00:11:57.320 like the rest of the rions. There's an expectation of 198 00:11:57.720 --> 00:12:00.399 more of the same, but there wasn't. And I think 199 00:12:00.399 --> 00:12:03.519 that drove him onto the ball fields. I mean, he 200 00:12:04.200 --> 00:12:09.159 loved sports. There's a great anecdote. He feels like the 201 00:12:09.200 --> 00:12:12.960 first new thing he ever got was a baseball glove. 202 00:12:13.000 --> 00:12:16.159 His dad drove him to the hardware store where they 203 00:12:16.240 --> 00:12:19.799 kept all the gloves, and he picked out his new glove, 204 00:12:19.919 --> 00:12:22.799 the first hand me down, non hand me down thing 205 00:12:22.840 --> 00:12:25.919 in his life. And what I love about that, as 206 00:12:25.960 --> 00:12:31.120 an aside, is that the museum is across the street 207 00:12:31.200 --> 00:12:34.360 from where that old hardware store used to be, and 208 00:12:34.360 --> 00:12:37.120 that glove is in that museum. So it traveled over, 209 00:12:37.519 --> 00:12:41.879 you know, seventy years now, it basically traveled half a 210 00:12:41.919 --> 00:12:46.159 block to go from the hardware store to the museum 211 00:12:46.559 --> 00:12:53.519 case and he just found that the baseball field. You know, 212 00:12:53.600 --> 00:12:55.639 he had trouble in English read the book, but he 213 00:12:55.639 --> 00:12:58.279 could read a scoreboard and That's where he got his 214 00:12:58.360 --> 00:13:01.080 confidence that, you know, the school day an end, and 215 00:13:01.120 --> 00:13:03.440 now it's his time. Now it's his time to shine. 216 00:13:03.600 --> 00:13:07.120 All that disappointment he felt in the classroom from teachers 217 00:13:07.159 --> 00:13:10.120 or fellow students was all washed away and it was 218 00:13:10.120 --> 00:13:13.960 time for Nolan Ryan to shine. And he loved it 219 00:13:14.000 --> 00:13:17.639 and he excelled and he was He learned very early 220 00:13:17.679 --> 00:13:20.919 on that he had this big arm and he was 221 00:13:20.919 --> 00:13:21.639 going to ride it. 222 00:13:22.679 --> 00:13:25.720 Why do you think he had such a big arm? 223 00:13:25.799 --> 00:13:30.200 Is it the mechanics? Just route strength, determination, a combination 224 00:13:30.320 --> 00:13:33.879 of three coordination, eye hind coordination or you know, strong 225 00:13:34.200 --> 00:13:36.600 lower body, were all of these things. 226 00:13:36.600 --> 00:13:37.759 What was he Well? 227 00:13:37.799 --> 00:13:40.360 I think he was a terrific natural athlete. He was 228 00:13:40.399 --> 00:13:42.759 a very good baseball player, or I'm a very good 229 00:13:42.759 --> 00:13:45.360 basketball player as well as baseball. But you know, we 230 00:13:45.639 --> 00:13:47.559 all grew up with kids who were about the same 231 00:13:47.600 --> 00:13:49.799 size as them, but just there was something different about him. 232 00:13:49.960 --> 00:13:51.720 You know, you play catch with them and that last 233 00:13:51.759 --> 00:13:54.240 foot got on you quick. You're like, well that's a 234 00:13:54.279 --> 00:13:58.320 little different. So early on, you know, I don't know 235 00:13:58.360 --> 00:14:01.360 if there was anything other than he was just a 236 00:14:01.399 --> 00:14:04.519 pretty good natural athlete. And then I found I think 237 00:14:04.519 --> 00:14:09.120 he found that winning was important to him, and he 238 00:14:09.399 --> 00:14:14.360 committed to these teams and he enjoyed it. And there's, 239 00:14:14.399 --> 00:14:17.799 you know, the great story where he wasn't you know, 240 00:14:17.840 --> 00:14:21.360 it might have been a teenager at the time, where 241 00:14:22.600 --> 00:14:24.440 you know, he had the big fastball, but he still 242 00:14:24.480 --> 00:14:28.039 couldn't control it. Yeah, and he like hit the first kid, 243 00:14:28.159 --> 00:14:31.120 hit the second kid, broke the helmet of the third kid, 244 00:14:31.159 --> 00:14:33.480 and the fourth kid wouldn't come to the plate. He 245 00:14:33.639 --> 00:14:36.679 told the coach, I'm not going up there, and Alan said, yeah, 246 00:14:36.679 --> 00:14:40.440 I knew I had him then refusing to come to 247 00:14:40.480 --> 00:14:43.720 the plate. That that's a pretty good sign. So I 248 00:14:43.759 --> 00:14:47.399 think that, you know, to push that a little. You 249 00:14:47.440 --> 00:14:50.799 asked about the discovery and the wild thing to me, 250 00:14:51.000 --> 00:14:54.000 especially in the context of today, where we know, you know, 251 00:14:54.399 --> 00:14:56.799 you could you could get information on every fourteen year 252 00:14:56.840 --> 00:14:59.159 old baseball player in the country if you wanted it, 253 00:14:59.399 --> 00:15:01.840 and you know, you'd know their swing, you know what 254 00:15:01.879 --> 00:15:04.600 they look like on a mound. Back then, it didn't 255 00:15:04.600 --> 00:15:07.360 work that way at all. And it's wild for me 256 00:15:07.440 --> 00:15:11.360 to think that he was this kid who was throwing 257 00:15:11.559 --> 00:15:14.919 who knows, ninety ninety five, you know, in high school 258 00:15:15.919 --> 00:15:19.320 and one scout found him one Yeah, I know, and 259 00:15:19.919 --> 00:15:22.720 Alvin High School had a good baseball program, they played 260 00:15:22.799 --> 00:15:27.399 good teams, they were in the state tournament, and for 261 00:15:27.440 --> 00:15:31.759 whatever reason, the fact that he couldn't control this fastball, 262 00:15:31.840 --> 00:15:33.879 the fact that he didn't have a great second pitch, 263 00:15:33.919 --> 00:15:37.799 he still had this very sort of sloppy curveball. One scout, 264 00:15:37.840 --> 00:15:40.679 a guy named Red Murph, who tramped all over the 265 00:15:40.720 --> 00:15:44.399 state and all the states nearby, stumbled onto him one 266 00:15:44.440 --> 00:15:47.559 afternoon and thought, this is the greatest arm I've ever seen. 267 00:15:47.960 --> 00:15:51.000 And a little sunken chested, skinny, one hundred and forty 268 00:15:51.039 --> 00:15:54.320 pound kid from Alvin High School who that day came 269 00:15:54.320 --> 00:15:57.360 in in relief. And Red Murph hadn't even planned on 270 00:15:57.399 --> 00:15:59.360 being there that day. It was just a fluke. And 271 00:16:00.080 --> 00:16:03.480 my sense is if Red hadn't steered his car toward 272 00:16:03.559 --> 00:16:06.080 that ballpark that day, we'd be talking about Nolan Ryan 273 00:16:06.120 --> 00:16:08.039 the veterin area amazing. 274 00:16:08.320 --> 00:16:11.159 So let's fast forward to he's on the Mets. He 275 00:16:11.200 --> 00:16:13.200 gets drafted by the Mets, he goes all the way 276 00:16:13.200 --> 00:16:16.879 through to the World Series against the Orioles, which they 277 00:16:16.919 --> 00:16:20.759 won in the five games, and then he got traded 278 00:16:20.879 --> 00:16:23.559 to the Angels. I believe if I recall correctly, and 279 00:16:23.600 --> 00:16:26.559 then he really blossomed. So what was this issue beyond 280 00:16:26.600 --> 00:16:29.720 the control thing? Why didn't the Mets management even though 281 00:16:29.759 --> 00:16:32.320 they drafted him, he seemed they seemed there seemed to 282 00:16:32.360 --> 00:16:34.919 be based on the book Tim a lot of naysayers 283 00:16:34.919 --> 00:16:39.279 within the organization who weren't really buying into what Nolan 284 00:16:39.360 --> 00:16:40.840 Ryan's true potential was. 285 00:16:41.639 --> 00:16:48.000 Right, They couldn't figure out how to get Nolan sort 286 00:16:48.000 --> 00:16:51.919 of tracked toward the strike zone, which was what it 287 00:16:52.000 --> 00:16:53.039 basically came down to. 288 00:16:53.440 --> 00:16:55.000 And so you'd. 289 00:16:54.840 --> 00:16:58.320 Get this guy who's putting up all these numbers in 290 00:16:58.360 --> 00:17:01.600 the minor league, striking out two batters an inning and 291 00:17:01.600 --> 00:17:05.359 and throwing you know, deep into games. Already they knew 292 00:17:05.440 --> 00:17:09.599 they had this force, they knew about this fastball, and 293 00:17:09.680 --> 00:17:16.319 the organization was very impatient for the next tom Sever, right, 294 00:17:16.400 --> 00:17:20.319 they needed the next Tom sever and it just wasn't 295 00:17:20.400 --> 00:17:23.559 coming for whatever reason. And I think there's there were 296 00:17:23.599 --> 00:17:26.240 a variety of reasons to take this little this kid 297 00:17:26.279 --> 00:17:28.160 from a small town in Texas, and you put them 298 00:17:28.160 --> 00:17:31.279 in New York City and you add all these expectations, 299 00:17:31.319 --> 00:17:34.759 and you add the press that's all leaning in also 300 00:17:34.880 --> 00:17:37.720 wondering when the next Tom sever is going to show 301 00:17:37.799 --> 00:17:42.480 up wearing Nolan Ryan's number. Uh, and all of that combined, 302 00:17:42.519 --> 00:17:46.079 plus he's newly married. He's you know, his wife is 303 00:17:46.559 --> 00:17:48.640 Ruth is two years younger than he is. They're trying 304 00:17:48.640 --> 00:17:50.599 to sort out the world. Who are they going to be, 305 00:17:50.759 --> 00:17:54.319 what are they going to be together? What does what 306 00:17:54.359 --> 00:17:56.920 does baseball look like? What does it feel like? And 307 00:17:57.000 --> 00:17:59.279 you know, there was there were certainly plenty of conversations 308 00:17:59.319 --> 00:18:01.960 back then about maybe baseball is just not for me 309 00:18:02.119 --> 00:18:06.920 because the experience was was just rough and the team 310 00:18:07.039 --> 00:18:10.759 Gil Hodges was the manager, Ruby Walker was the pitching coach, 311 00:18:11.319 --> 00:18:13.319 and they just couldn't figure it out. He was. They 312 00:18:13.480 --> 00:18:15.480 just didn't know what they were going to get when 313 00:18:15.480 --> 00:18:18.240 they put him in a game. And it got to 314 00:18:18.279 --> 00:18:22.599 a point where, uh, you know, it was time to 315 00:18:22.799 --> 00:18:27.079 they needed offense. They went and got this far shortstop 316 00:18:27.359 --> 00:18:30.480 from from the Angels, who was you know, thirty years 317 00:18:30.519 --> 00:18:32.640 old and and could hit, and they were going to 318 00:18:32.680 --> 00:18:35.519 put him at third base and off they were going 319 00:18:35.559 --> 00:18:38.200 to go behind this this pitching staff with the Severs 320 00:18:38.200 --> 00:18:41.319 and Kouzman's and Gentries and mc andrews and John Mattlack 321 00:18:41.480 --> 00:18:44.599 was coming and uh, it just all made sense then 322 00:18:44.680 --> 00:18:47.759 well he was. He'd barely gotten in the door in 323 00:18:47.839 --> 00:18:51.039 Anaheim when Tom Morgan, the pitching coach with the Angels, 324 00:18:51.039 --> 00:18:54.599 said we got to rework your mechanics. And they did 325 00:18:54.880 --> 00:19:00.359 and suddenly, look, he was never going to be, you know, guy, 326 00:19:00.480 --> 00:19:03.880 a command a control pitcher. But they got it squared 327 00:19:03.880 --> 00:19:08.119 away enough where it was it was legit where you know, 328 00:19:08.119 --> 00:19:10.400 instead of walking six guys a game, he was walking 329 00:19:10.720 --> 00:19:12.640 four and that made all the difference. 330 00:19:12.720 --> 00:19:14.000 I don't know if you got into this, it's a 331 00:19:14.000 --> 00:19:16.799 pretty granular question, but what was what was he doing 332 00:19:16.839 --> 00:19:18.359 wrong in his mechanics? 333 00:19:18.960 --> 00:19:21.440 Well, you know, to get the weeds a little bit. 334 00:19:21.480 --> 00:19:24.319 He was flying open, he was his shoulders front shoulder 335 00:19:24.440 --> 00:19:28.440 was whipping toward the first base dugout and the ball 336 00:19:28.519 --> 00:19:30.880 was flying all over the plate. And what Tom Morgan 337 00:19:30.920 --> 00:19:35.000 would do was he tom Morgan would stand right next 338 00:19:35.000 --> 00:19:37.400 to Nolan and said, if you don't go straight to 339 00:19:37.440 --> 00:19:39.799 the plate, you're gonna hit me in the face or 340 00:19:39.880 --> 00:19:44.160 knock me off. And so they did that for weeks 341 00:19:44.160 --> 00:19:47.400 and weeks and weeks with Tom Morgan standing right on 342 00:19:47.480 --> 00:19:50.279 top of Nolan, and he had nowhere to go. He 343 00:19:50.400 --> 00:19:52.359 had to go straight to the plate. So you get 344 00:19:52.359 --> 00:19:55.599 it all streamlined, you get everything behind the ball. The 345 00:19:55.640 --> 00:19:59.000 fastball even ticked up a little at the time, curveball 346 00:19:59.079 --> 00:20:02.079 came better as a result, and you know, suddenly he 347 00:20:02.119 --> 00:20:03.240 was a competitive pitcher. 348 00:20:03.759 --> 00:20:04.160 Amazing. 349 00:20:04.200 --> 00:20:06.839 So what tell us about his kind of trajectory with 350 00:20:06.960 --> 00:20:10.160 the Angels then, because before he went to the Astros 351 00:20:10.200 --> 00:20:13.079 and the Rangers. Finally he's had a good run. He 352 00:20:13.160 --> 00:20:17.440 really became the Ryan Express on the Angels. 353 00:20:17.359 --> 00:20:20.759 Right, he became a superstar. He became suddenly a guy 354 00:20:20.759 --> 00:20:24.240 who you couldn't trust over four or five innings to 355 00:20:24.519 --> 00:20:27.640 a guy you could trust over three hundred innings. And 356 00:20:28.640 --> 00:20:31.920 I think probably you know, there was suddenly he had 357 00:20:31.960 --> 00:20:35.039 all this confidence. There was never a doubt that he 358 00:20:35.119 --> 00:20:38.119 was going to get the ball. Four days later, the 359 00:20:38.200 --> 00:20:42.200 manager would leave me in games deep into games, you know, 360 00:20:42.319 --> 00:20:46.160 into the eighth ninth inning. I would put Robert. I 361 00:20:46.160 --> 00:20:49.680 would put up his seventy two through seventy four seasons. 362 00:20:49.720 --> 00:20:53.480 Those three seasons. You could cherry pick three seasons out 363 00:20:53.480 --> 00:20:55.960 of your favorite pitcher, no matter where they are. They 364 00:20:55.960 --> 00:20:57.920 don't have to be consecutive. And I would put those 365 00:20:57.920 --> 00:21:03.720 three seasons up against any you know, just ridiculous numbers 366 00:21:03.720 --> 00:21:07.200 in terms of nine hundred and fifty innings pitched and 367 00:21:07.880 --> 00:21:13.160 you know, a thousand and some strikeouts. He just what, 368 00:21:13.279 --> 00:21:16.680 like I want to say, seventy five seventy six complete 369 00:21:16.720 --> 00:21:21.079 games in that period. He just became suddenly, you know, 370 00:21:21.319 --> 00:21:24.359 he just grew all of a sudden. He was not 371 00:21:24.559 --> 00:21:27.279 just a guy who, Wow, this feels better. He was 372 00:21:27.319 --> 00:21:29.480 a guy who was I'm going to beat you today 373 00:21:29.640 --> 00:21:34.039 and every single day. And the wild thing you pushed 374 00:21:34.079 --> 00:21:37.079 that out just a little bit further is he lost 375 00:21:37.119 --> 00:21:42.079 sixteen games every season, exactly sixteen games every season because 376 00:21:42.119 --> 00:21:45.240 the Angels, which would be a running theme in his career, 377 00:21:45.319 --> 00:21:46.440 the Angels weren't very good. 378 00:21:46.960 --> 00:21:49.599 Now what some of the amazing stats I think were 379 00:21:50.319 --> 00:21:53.839 like per game pitches nowadays, Like I'm out here in 380 00:21:53.880 --> 00:21:56.119 the San Diego area and i like to watch the 381 00:21:56.119 --> 00:21:59.000 Padres and they're like five innings from the starter, and 382 00:21:59.039 --> 00:22:00.279 then we got the greatest. 383 00:22:00.680 --> 00:22:01.960 Inning, inning inning inning. 384 00:22:02.559 --> 00:22:06.240 Right in Nolan's day, he pitched, if I got this correct, 385 00:22:06.480 --> 00:22:09.880 over two hundred pitches and a number of starts. 386 00:22:10.319 --> 00:22:13.920 Yeah, yeah, Well the most famous one, of course, was 387 00:22:13.960 --> 00:22:17.440 the two hundred and thirty five pitch game against the 388 00:22:17.480 --> 00:22:24.039 Red Sox, and uh what The part I love it 389 00:22:24.119 --> 00:22:26.720 is Louis Tiant was pitching for the Red Sox. The 390 00:22:26.759 --> 00:22:28.960 game went into extra innings. I think it was I 391 00:22:28.960 --> 00:22:33.160 think Nolan pitched thirteen innings and afterward he was mad 392 00:22:33.279 --> 00:22:35.440 that Bobby Winkles, the manager, pulled him out of the 393 00:22:35.440 --> 00:22:37.880 game because t pitched fourteen. That game. 394 00:22:40.000 --> 00:22:41.000 Absolutely amazing. 395 00:22:41.079 --> 00:22:43.000 Now, what do you think about that in terms of 396 00:22:43.039 --> 00:22:44.559 your you know, you've been on the beach for all 397 00:22:44.599 --> 00:22:47.880 these years that the game has changed. What do you 398 00:22:47.960 --> 00:22:50.599 how would you compare those days to nowadays? 399 00:22:50.599 --> 00:22:50.839 Where? 400 00:22:51.079 --> 00:22:51.559 And why? 401 00:22:51.640 --> 00:22:54.119