AUSTIN, Texas -- Nolan Ryan, baseball's career strikeout leader, was in stable condition Monday after emergency double-bypass surgery.
Ryan was in near-perfect health for a 53-year-old Hall of Fame pitcher. Family history, however, made him a perfect candidate for heart disease.Doctors were hastily summoned Sunday at Round Rock Medical Center, where Ruth Ryan drove her husband after he felt chest pains and experienced shortness of breath during a morning walk in the Austin suburb of Round Rock. Ryan is part owner of a minor league baseball team there.
"The doctors told us he has the heart of a 30-year-old," Ryan's eldest son, Reid, said. "We feel confident that he is going to recover fully."
Mark Felger, who performed the two-hour operation to clear an arterial blockage, and Reid Ryan planned a news conference Monday night.
An electrocardiogram and blood tests showed Ryan did not have a heart attack, Texas Rangers spokesman John Blake said.