Today (1983): Nolan Ryan throws a heater past The Big Train

When he retired in 1927, Walter “Big Train” Johnson held not only one of the baddest nicknames in pitching history, but also the MLB career record for strikeouts at 3,509.  It’s a record he would hold for almost six decades. 

Then, in 1966 along came a 19-year old fireballer by the name of Nolan Ryan who was set to change the game.  By the age of 25, Ryan had already notched the first of six career 300-strikeout seasons.  On April 27, 1983, Nolan Ryan would register his 3,510th strikeout to break Johnson’s 56-year old record. 

Even more impressive is that Ryan would go on to play for another ten years and completely obliterate the previous record by 2,205 strikeouts or roughly 62%.  Plus, he threw crazy heat in RBI Baseball on Nintendo.  

As of today, 7 other pitchers have also exceeded Johnson’s total including Gaylord Perry, Don Sutton, Tom Seaver, Bert Blyleven, Steve Carlton, Roger Clemens and Randy Johnson, but none have come close to touching Ryan’s career total of 5,714.  Randy Johnson sits second on the list with 4,875. 

And of course, any mention of Nolan Ryan is just an excuse to post a picture reminding everyone that he once beat the hell out of Robin Ventura on the mound at the age of 46.

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