Iron Men

When Nolan Ryan says pitchers can throw more, he speaks from experience: In 1989, at age 42, he threw 166 pitches for Texas in a loss to the Royals. It's the second-highest total by a nonknuckleballer since STATS LLC began tracking pitches in 1988. (Three pitchers have thrown 167.) Here are three other legendarily large pitch counts.

Luis Tiant: 163

Four days after shutting out the Reds in Game 1 of the 1975 World Series, the Red Sox ace hurled another nine-inning gem in Game 4.

Tom Cheney: 228

On Sept. 12, 1962, the Senators righty pitched 16 innings and struck out 21 Orioles—still the single-game major league strikeout record.

Ryan: 235

As a 27-year-old for the Angels, Ryan pitched an epic 13 innings against Boston in 1974. The Angels won in 15—over Tiant, who had a complete game.