Just in time for the start of a new baseball season comes "Facing Nolan,” Bradley Jackson’s entertaining documentary that captures not just the extraordinary career of one legendary pitcher but also one of the game’s greatest eras.
The film’s reverential but playful tone suits Texan Nolan Ryan’s dual folksy charm and near mythic competitive edge. If you’ve forgotten what Nolan Ryan brought to baseball for a record 27 seasons, Jackson’s film supplies the highlights with plenty of clips and interviews. “Facing Nolan” is a nostalgic visit with some of the top hitters from across several decades: George Brett, Rod Carew, Pete Rose, Cal Ripken, Jr., and Dave Winfield colorfully recount what it was like to stand in the batter’s box as Ryan’s 100-plus mph fastball zipped past their heads.
There’s footage of his early years with the Mets where, like most players in the 1960s, the modest baseball salary required him to work during the offseason. We revisit his glory days in the 1970s with the California Angles and the ‘80s with the Houston Astros, the team he chose to sign with in order to be close to home and, of course, the record seven no-hit games, including his final one against the Toronto Blue Jays at Arlington Stadium on May 1, 1991, at age 44.
The film includes up close and personal footage of Ryan today, a cattle rancher still married to his childhood sweetheart Ruth (interviewed at length) who encouraged and nurtured his career. Though clips, we see that Ryan always acknowledged Ruth as a partner in his success; she raised the family that supported him over his long career. We see him fishing, tending his ranch, joking with his children and grandchildren; older and paunchier but still a soft spoken guy of few words who’s modest but tough as nails.
Ryan pitched well into his forties. After leaving the Astros, he signed as a free agent at age 42 with the Texas Rangers in 1989 when George W. Bush, also interviewed extensively, was part-owner and CEO. “Being with a team that had very little notoriety at all, it was like Elvis had come aboard,” says Eric Nadel, Rangers radio announcer.
With the Rangers, Ryan went on to pitch the sixth and seventh no-hitters of his career and retired only after raising his strikeouts to an astonishing 5,714, a record that pitchers Roger Clemens and Randy Johnson claim will never be broken. Despite such jaw-dropping stats, it’s the brawl that started when Robin Ventura, the Chicago White Sox third baseman half Ryan’s age, charged the mound in a 1993 game and Ryan’s efficient corralling of Ventura that elevated the pitcher’s mythic stature for many fans.
“Facing Nolan” which premieres following the Texas Rangers’ afternoon game against the defending World Series Champion Atlanta Braves on May 1, even has fun with its closing credits. There’s footage of Ryan’s brief 1970s guest spot as himself opposite Kate Mulgrew on the equally legendary daytime drama “Ryan’s Hope.” For baseball fans and those who love pop culture, it’s engaging and irresistible stuff.
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