Few pitchers have been as iconic as Nolan Ryan.

Ryan was a durable, dominant force long before anyone paid attention to pitch counts. The Hall of Fame right-hander threw harder than anyone else at a time when it was rare for a pitcher to reach 100 mph on the radar gun. Over a 27-year career, Ryan established records that will never be broken, including career strikeouts (5,714) and no-hitters (7).

Longtime baseball writer Tim Brown has a new book about the Ryan Express. We caught up with Brown to discuss his latest work. Nolan: The Singular Life of an American Original will be available for purchase on May 19.

Note: This interview has been edited and condensed for length and clarity.

Awful Announcing: What inspired you to write about Nolan Ryan?

Tim Brown: “I’ve always been interested in him. I think he had such an interesting career that I never really knew what to do with it. You admire the man. He seemed like an honorable, decent guy. But his statistics were all over the place. He won only a little more than he lost. The record seems so mediocre when you hold it against his reputation, the no-hitters, the strikeouts, the records, and the longevity. I think I decided his career was more of a working man’s career. He pitched like he owed something to this arm, this gift he was given, and I was just curious about that.”

Why should someone buy your book?

“In my lifetime, I don’t think there’s an athlete more tied to his home state than Nolan Ryan is to Texas. There are areas like that that I don’t think have been written about in this depth. Nolan is 79, and we talked a lot. He’s such a fascinating figure not only in baseball but in America. I think it was worth telling and worth reading about.”

This is about the day I saw Nolan Ryan for who he was. Thirty-five years later, I wrote a book about him… https://t.co/ysYaXLYbFXpic.twitter.com/Q364hEP14G

— Tim Brown (@ByTimBrown) April 13, 2026

What do you consider the most interesting detail in your book?

“There was a kid named Sid Holland. He was a bat boy and a ball boy for the Astros in the mid-80s. His father was the umpire room assistant, and Sid, as a boy, would jump on the bus from Trinity Gardens in Houston to help his dad at the Astrodome. His father died when Sid was young, and Sid continued to work at the Astrodome. When it came time for him to go to college, he didn’t have any money. He wasn’t going to be able to go to school because he didn’t have a (baseball) scholarship right away, and Nolan paid for him.

“Years later, the kid was drafted by the Rangers. He was a ballplayer. They met again when Nolan’s career was winding down, and Sid’s career was just beginning. Sid went to Nolan and said, ‘Hey, by the way, someday I’m going to pay you back.’ Nolan said ‘No. Don’t bother. Just be kind to the next person.’ I loved that story.”

How much cooperation did you receive from Nolan Ryan?

“It was a slow process. The Ryans were slightly reluctant at first. I did not have a close relationship with Nolan before this started. By the end, they became more open. They live just outside of Round Rock. About a year ago, we spent a few days together and spoke with Nolan and Ruth. It took several hours, and then Nolan and I connected by phone. After that, they were very cooperative and gracious, and I really appreciated that.”

How did you convince him to participate?

“As I was nearing my deadline, the book was all but complete. I sent Reid, Nolan’s oldest son, a couple of chapters just to say, ‘Hey, I wanted to reach out one last time and let you know that the book is happening.’ I sent him one of the early chapters, and I think I also sent him the Sid Holland chapter. Reid got back to me. I had spent a few weeks in Alvin, where Nolan grew up, and had spoken to an awful lot of people around Nolan. Reid called me and said, ‘Hey, why don’t you come down?’ I think that because I persevered, they felt I’d earned some trust and time with them. It was January (2025).”

May 1, 1991: 44 year-old Nolan Ryan throws his 7th career no hitter, blanking the Blue Jays 3-0, becoming the oldest player in MLB history ever to throw a no-hitter.
pic.twitter.com/jPKkIfbHub

— This Day In Sports Clips (@TDISportsClips) May 2, 2026

So, there was a chance this book would have been published without the Ryans’ involvement?

“I was a couple of months away. I was very pleased. I think I’d spoken to enough people where I thought I had as much as I was going to be able to get without having spoken to the Ryans. But I thought the book was going to be a lot better with them.”

What would Ryan consider the greatest game he has ever pitched?

“He threw seven no-hitters, and you think that that would be the one he would pick. I asked him that very question, and it was in July of 1972. The Red Sox were in Anaheim for a night game. In the top of the first inning, he walks Tommy Harper. the leadoff hitter. He struck out the next batter. Then Carl Yastrzemski rolled a single into right field. He retired the next 26 batters in order, 15 by strikeout, including Carlton Fisk three times.”

Is there anything in the book about his famous fight against Robin Ventura?

“There is a chapter about Robin Ventura, as there would have to be, given that nearly every sports bar in Texas has a photo of their fight framed and nailed to a wall. What I found interesting, nearly 20 years later, is that the two reconciled with a short conversation and a handshake prior to Ventura’s first game as manager of the White Sox. The game was in Texas. Nolan was president of the Rangers. It bothered Nolan that Robin might be booed at the ballpark that day, so he asked to meet with him. They wished each other luck. And then, an hour later, Robin was booed at the ballpark.”

When Nolan Ryan beat up Robin Ventura, and then stayed in the game and retired 12 of the next 13 batters
pic.twitter.com/YfPeJQ69Kb

— Kent Murphy (@KentMurphy) April 8, 2026

What was Nolan Ryan’s relationship with the media like?

“He was fantastic as a minor league pitcher. Whenever he went to the big-league club, he would have command issues. He would lose games, and the media was a little rough, calling him “The Myth” because they kept hearing about this guy who was coming. This is the next (Tom) Seaver. When he got to New York, the results wouldn’t be there. And so the media could be very tough on him.

“In my experience, as a guy who covered baseball for 30-some years, if a guy has a rough go with the media early in his career, he is difficult to deal with from then on because he has had that experience and has trust issues and things like that. Nolan was just the opposite. He was very accessible. He understood that people had a job to do.”

Was there a player Nolan Ryan just couldn’t get out?

“The guy who comes to mind is Will Clark, who in his first at bat off (hit a home run off him). Nolan’s first pitch was a curveball. And if you watch the video, Will looks like he’s been electrocuted. He flinches so hard. Thinking fastball and getting curveball. He laughed in the box. The catcher looks up to him and goes, ‘What are you laughing at?’ (Clark) says, ‘The Express is throwing me curveballs.’ (Later,) he homers.

“His six home runs off Nolan Ryan are the most by anyone in history. The conclusion of that story is that Will goes to the Texas Rangers. Nolan has retired. Nolan is working for the club, and they would pass each other in the hallways. Will would be like, ‘Hey, Nolan.’ Nolan would coldly not even look up and just say, ‘Will.’ Still, after all these years, it was a personal thing for him that he couldn’t get Will Clark out.”

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