Ryan and run support

[Jim65]

Originally Posted by Touch'EmAll

When I originally posted Ryan had 5 games he lost that were decided by 1 run - that included all the good pitches, all the bad pitches, all the walks, all the wild pitches, all his fielding errors, all the stolen bases against him... all of it.

In fact, if anything, my calculation based on one run games favors Palmer more because the differential was actually more than 1 run - 4.79 runs vs. 3.56 runs - differential of 1.23 runs.

There may never have been a player with such disparity of opinion. Some folks think Ryan was a scrub, not even the best pitcher on his own team, barely worthy of Hall of Fame consideration, etc. Then you get folks who put him into the "Legendary" status, most dominant, owner of strikeout and no-hit records that may never fall, was the Million Dollar man.

So why does the public at large value Ryan's baseball card prices more than any other contemporary pitcher? Why does Ryan get the special documentary instead of Don Sutton, or Gaylord Perry, or Steve Carlton? Why do the Astros sign Ryan to a Million Dollars?

No one thinks Ryan was a scrub. Ryan is a first ballot HOFer and deservedly so. Some fans think he's a top 5 or 10 all-time pitcher, which he isn't. When some fans point out Ryan's faults, Ryan's fans take it as a personal insult. Saying he walked too many batters or should've won more games if he learned to pitch earlier in his career instead trying to blow every batter away, does not mean we are saying he's a scrub.

There is a huge fascination with Ryan and he has many diehard fans, thats why he gets a special documentary. Do you think getting a documentary makes him better than Steve Carlton?

I have no negative feelings about Nolan Ryan, I just do not believe he is an all-time great, thats not an insult.