On May 29, the will be giving away throwback jerseys — but not the kind you might be thinking of.
Normally, throwbacks pay homage to a memorable era or year for a team. This promotional giveaway, however, will honor one specific game: when Nolan Ryan got his lip gashed fielding a ball … and proceeded to throw an eight-inning gem in a soon-to-be-iconic white jersey stained with blood.
During a September 1990 game against the Rangers, star outfielder Bo Jackson connected on a Ryan pitch, with the sharply hit ball one-hopping off the ground right into Ryan’s face. Ryan, unfazed, proceeded to field the ball and throw out Jackson at first. But damage had been done.
The ball had opened a 2-inch gash in Ryan’s lip, one that would require six stitches to close after the game. The key phrase in that sentence? After the game.
Not one to be concerned with the blood dripping onto his jersey, the Hall of Fame ace proceeded to pitch until he walked Kansas City’s leadoff batter in the eighth inning, preserving a 1-0 lead and striking out eight batters in total.
You’re going to need THIS Nolan Ryan bloody lip jersey on May 29.
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Ryan wouldn’t be credited with the win for his bloodied performance — the Royals would score their leadoff runner in the eighth before the Rangers walked the game off one inning later. “Neither one was very pleasant,” the veteran hurler about his no-decision and in-game injury.
Fittingly, the Rangers’ bloody jersey giveaway will come when they play the Royals. It’s not the only giveaway the team has planned honoring the legendary pitcher, either: On July 20, Texas depicting Ryan throwing a punch, an homage to when the then-46-year-old threw down with Robin Ventura in 1993.
