Netflix "Fastball"

Knuckleball wasn't bad either. Both were awesome to watch as a fan of baseball and the Dad of a pitcher.

Truly, what amazed me most about the documentary was not how fast these guys throw/pitch (which is impressive) but Nolan Ryan.  Nolan Ryan has to be the most incredible pitcher to date.  The guy was throwing 95-96 when he was 46 years old.  He blew away the strike-out record, and holds the record for the most no-hitters. I believe the guy threw two no-hitters when he was in his 40s.  It was unfortunate he played for some really bad teams, which I think gets held against him. 

I'd really like to see MLB come forward with a Cy Young type award for Nolan Ryan while he is still with us.  Not only is he the best in a generation, but we are talking about best for a century or ever.  In my mind, he is equal to the legend of a Babe Ruth in the history of the game.   Nobody compares to him.   As always, JMO.

Thanks Shoveit4ks.  I'll check out knuckleball if it is on Netflix.

It is on Netflix. #RyanExpress

Opposite Field is also a great movie.  Watch with your sons and daughters - might make them appreciate things they take for granted!

fenwaysouth posted:

Truly, what amazed me most about the documentary was not how fast these guys throw/pitch (which is impressive) but Nolan Ryan.  Nolan Ryan has to be the most incredible pitcher to date.  The guy was throwing 95-96 when he was 46 years old.  He blew away the strike-out record, and holds the record for the most no-hitters. I believe the guy threw two no-hitters when he was in his 40s.  It was unfortunate he played for some really bad teams, which I think gets held against him. 

I'd really like to see MLB come forward with a Cy Young type award for Nolan Ryan while he is still with us.  Not only is he the best in a generation, but we are talking about best for a century or ever.  In my mind, he is equal to the legend of a Babe Ruth in the history of the game.   Nobody compares to him.   As always, JMO.

Thanks Shoveit4ks.  I'll check out knuckleball if it is on Netflix.

Ryan was great and one of the hardest throwers ever but I don't think he is a top 5 pitcher of all time. 

Ryan is the all time strikeout leader but also the all time leader in walks. 

Dominik85,

I understand your point and probably some context was appropriate in my statements.  The guy just makes my jaw drop when I think of all the records he set.  He didn't move the pitching bar by inches....he moved it by feet.  He has become the standard bearer when looking at power pitchers and velocity.    His statistics are incredible.  However, would I want him pitching a game if my life depended on it...probably not.  I'd opt for Pedro Martinez or Sandy Koufax in their prime.   Ryan was a power pitcher, and he was unique in that regard.  His longevity is also freakishly unique. 

Statistics can be misleading.  Due to Ryan's long career he had more opportunities to walk people as well, so you have to keep that in mind.  The MLB record books are filled with Hall of Fame hitters who led the league and careers in strikeouts only because they were great hitters and their careers lasted longer.   I think the same could be said for Ryan.

Of course his walk numbers have a lot to do with the innings he pitched (of course that is true for his Ks too), but even on a per inning Basis Ryan walked a lot of guys.

His career average is 4.6 walks/9 which is a lot, basically a walk every other inning.

Today it is rare that a starter with more than 4 walks per 9 has success, usually those guys land in the bullpen now.

If you look at the top20 starting pitchers in WAR last season only one of them walked more than 3 per 9, the top9 all walked under 2.

also Ryan did underperform his peripherals, he mostly was good at striking out People and throwing a lot of innings.

still he is a top10 pitcher ever (or Close) and a legend but not near the best pitcher ever like many People seem to believe.

Wife is out of town which is the best time to catch up on movies she has no interest in watching.  Got another Netflix movie that had been previously mentioned on HSBBWeb that is worth a watch.  Battered Bastards of Baseball.  This is a pretty cool story if you like documentary style stuff and the underdog.  http://community.hsbaseballweb...bastards-of-baseball

At the end of the film I realized one the original Portland Mavericks is actually one of the major benefactors to my oldest son's college baseball program.  He invented Big League Chew.  I know my son has met him, but I'm not sure my son realized who the Mavericks were and what they did.  https://www.washingtonpost.com...d812efc09_story.html 

I agree with Fenway on Ryan being the once in a Century physical freak.  I view it as extremely unlikely anyone will ever approach his strikeout numbers.  He is unquestionably the longest running pitcher which counts - but not enough to make him top 20 All time IMO.

IMO he is more like Phil Neikro than anyone else for results.  Lasted forever but was not more than a mediocre pitcher no matter how good the team around him was.  For example - Steve Carlton won 27 games for a putrid 1972 Phillies team and Ryan never did anything near that with teams that were all significantly better than that 1972 Phils mess.  In fact he won 20 games only 2 times which was then the benchmark of solid pitchers.  He is not even in the list of Top 10 pitchers all time with 15 win seasons.  Something Neikro did do.

I loved watching the guy but do not think he is near the top 10 and probably is not a top 10 pitcher during his career.  Here is a list of guys that I think were better than Ryan who pitched his first game in 1966 and his last in 1993:

Koufax, Drysdale, Gibson, Ford, Palmer, Seaver, Carlton, Maddox, Smoltz, Johnson, Clemons, Pedro

I placed a high value on durability which is why guys like Gooden, Marichal, Jenkins, McClain, Valenzuela and many others are not here. 

Every one of the guys I listed was someone that I would probably take over Ryan to face Ryan in a playoff game in the prime of their career.  Ryan might throw a no hitter at me but I like the other guys to get me a W.

I loved the film but I doubt Ryan threw a 109mph fastball in the 9th inning.  How accurate was that machine and other contraptions used to calculate pitch speed for Feller, Johnson, etc?  In the 90's there were "fast" and "slow" radar guns.  These days we only use the JUGS fast gun.