Happy 76th Birthday, Nolan Ryan! - Let's Celebrate With The Video Of Nolan Ryan Pounding Robin Ventura's Face In


Today, we pay homage to the baddest motherfucker to ever toe the rubber. Happy Birthday to Nolan Ryan, one of the greatest pitchers to ever walk the earth. Today's his 76th birthday and any time you have a chance to post this video, you gotta do it. It's worth the watch 3-4x a year to remember just how lopsided this encounter was. The brawl also led to one of the finest still photos ever, one that Nolan Ryan proudly autographs to this day:


Fun Fact: Nolan Ryan was 46 when this happened. Robin Ventura was just 26. Also, Nolan Ryan issued the beatdown, then stayed in the game. Ventura was the only one ejected, which is wild. Lesson learned: don't charge the mound when Nolan Ryan is standing on it. 

This moment stands out and embodies Nolan Ryan pretty well. He'd throw it inside, probably around triple digits, then welcome you if you foolishly charged the mound just to dish out a zillion uppercuts and make you instantly regret your decision. The ultimate badass. Try to imagine pissing this guy off then stepping into the batter's box to see him bloodied up, staring at you 60 feet away:


Nolan Ryan was so much more than this one snippet of video. 

He played twenty-seven years in the MLB, from 1966 to 1993, with a fastball topping out at 108.1 mph. Along the way, he struck out 5,714 batters and threw 7 no-hitters, both considered unbreakable records. He started 773 games and once threw 235 pitches in a single game, for all you load management cowards out there. 

Another one of my favorites is his 85 mph opening pitch in 2010 when he was 63 years old. He got loose under the stadium and could still pop the leather even in his older age. 

Happy Birthday to a legend, I'll leave you with some of his highlights:

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