Nolan Ryan
From The Met Wiki
Nolan Ryan was a pitcher for the Mets in 1966 and from 1968 to 1971. He appeared in 105 games during his time with the team. Ryan recorded 29 wins and 493 strikeouts as a Met.
Ryan started his career on September 11, 1966. Against the Braves at Shea Stadium, he pitched two innings in the Mets' 8-3 loss. Nolan got Atlanta's Pat Jarvis for his first major league strikeout in the game.
After a year on military duty and in the minor leagues, Ryan pitched his first full major league season in 1968. He had a 3.09 earned run average and 133 strikeouts for the year. On April 14, Nolan recorded his first major league win with a combined 4-0 shutout with reliever Danny Frisella at Houston. Against the Dodgers at Shea on April 19, he was tagged with a 3-2 loss despite 11 strikeouts (his first ever 10+ strikeout game.) Ryan struck out 10 Phillies batter and got the win in a 3-0 victory on May 2 at Shea. He pitched a complete game and struck out 14 for a 3-2 win at Cincinnati on May 14. Nolan was also the winning pitcher in a 4-0 Mets triumph over the Giants on June 7 at San Francisco.
In 1969, Ryan had a 6-3 won-lost record in the Mets' championship season. He pitched 89 and one-third innings in 10 starts and 15 relief appearances. In the Mets' first game ever in Canada, Nolan hurled seven innings of shutout ball in relief of Jerry Koosman for the win as the Mets defeated the Montreal Expos, 2-0, on April 29. He pitched a complete game and recorded a win in the Mets' 10-1 triumph on August 5 at Cincinnati. At Shea on September 10, Nolan struck out 11 batters and pitched a complete game in a 7-1 Mets win over the Expos. This victory completed a doubleheader sweep and put the Mets a full game in first place ahead of the Chicago Cubs in the National League East standings.
On October 6, 1969, Ryan struck out seven batters in seven innings of relief to record the win as the Mets defeated the Braves, 7-4, at Shea in Game 3 of the National League Championship Series to clinch the pennant. In Game 3 of the World Series, he recorded a save in the Mets' 5-0 victory over the Orioles at Shea on October 14. This was Nolan's only appearance ever in a World Series game.
Ryan was the starting pitcher in 19 of his 27 games in 1970. For the year, he recorded 7 wins and 125 strikeouts. On April 18, Nolan pitched the first complete game shutout of his career with a one-hitter for a 7-0 Mets win over the Phillies at Shea. Ryan struck out 15 batters in this game. He pitched a complete game in a 3-1 Mets win over the Cubs at Shea on May 24. At Chicago on June 24, Nolan was the winning pitcher as the Mets defeated the Cubs, 6-1, to sweep a doubleheader and go into first place in the NL East. He also pitched a three-hit shutout and struck out 13 for a 4-0 Mets win over the Cubs on August 4 at Shea.
In 1971, Ryan made 26 starts in his final year with the Mets. He pitched 152 innings and collected 10 wins while striking out 137 batters. Nolan had 16 strikeouts in a 2-1 complete game win at San Diego in the second game of a twinbill on May 29. Against the Pirates at Shea on June 30, he hit his first career triple and recorded a win in the Mets' 4-0 victory. Ryan also pitched eight innings and collected two singles in the Mets' 20-6 rout of the Braves in Atlanta on August 7.
On December 10, 1971, Ryan was traded to the California Angels with Francisco Estrada, Don Rose and Leroy Stanton for infielder Jim Fregosi. He pitched 22 more seasons in the major leagues with the Angels, Astros and Rangers. Nolan ended his career with 324 wins and an all-time record of 5,714 strikeouts. He was elected the the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1999.
