Call to the pen
Fansided

MLB history: 5 greatest seasons for a pitcher who was 45 or older

By Kevin Henry

NEW YORK - CIRCA 1985: Pitcher Phil Niekro #35 of the New York Yankees pitches during a Major League Baseball game circa 1985 at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx borough of New York City. Niekro played for the Yankees from 1984-85. (Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images)
NEW YORK - CIRCA 1985: Pitcher Phil Niekro #35 of the New York Yankees pitches during a Major League Baseball game circa 1985 at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx borough of New York City. Niekro played for the Yankees from 1984-85. (Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images) /
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MILWAUKEE – 1992: Nolan Ryan of the Texas Rangers pitches during an MLB game against the Milwaukee Brewers at County Stadium in Milwaukee, Wisconsin during the 1992 season. (Photo by Ron Vesely/MLB Photos via Getty Images)
MILWAUKEE – 1992: Nolan Ryan of the Texas Rangers pitches during an MLB game against the Milwaukee Brewers at County Stadium in Milwaukee, Wisconsin during the 1992 season. (Photo by Ron Vesely/MLB Photos via Getty Images) /

At 45, Nolan Ryan of the Texas Rangers strikes out 157 in 157.1 innings pitched

After making his MLB debut on September 11, 1966, Nolan Ryan was still bringing the heat in 1992, whiffing 157 batters in 157.1 innings over 27 starts.

Those numbers included 13 New York Yankees in a 4-1 win on July 4 as Ryan went the distance, allowing just three hits and one run. Danny Tartabull’s two-out solo shot in the ninth inning was the only scoring the Yankees could do all day against Ryan, who struck out eight of the nine New York starters at least once.

Ryan would also strike out 12 Oakland A’s in an August 6 matchup, but the pair of runs scored against him were enough for Oakland to grab a 2-0 win.

His 9.0 strikeouts per nine innings marked the first time in three seasons that he didn’t average 10 or more in the category. In fact, go back just one season (at the age of 44) and Ryan posted an MLB-leading 1.006 WHIP, allowing just 5.3 hits per nine innings.

At 45, Ryan was still doing plenty to impress on the mound. And yes, it would still be one more season before Ryan was a part of one of the most talked-about mound charges in MLB history, putting Chicago’s Robin Ventura in a headlock.

Ryan would make 13 starts during the 1993 season before retiring. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1999, being named on 491 of the 497 ballots.

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