Ryan, Ventura Meet

GERRY FRALEY

Staff writer

gfraley@dallasnews.com

Published: 06 April 2012 10:58 PM

ARLINGTON — Rangers president Nolan Ryan and Chicago White Sox rookie manager Robin Ventura shook hands Friday, bringing closure to their celebrated fight.

Ryan and Ventura met in a hallway outside the White Sox clubhouse at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington before the clubs met in the season opener. They spoke briefly, congratulated each other for their accomplishments of the last 19 years and offered best wishes for the future.

“It went well,” said Ryan, who initiated the peace meeting. “It was kind of a nonevent, but it needed to be done. I didn’t want it to linger and people think there were some hard feelings.”

In 1993, Ventura charged the mound after being hit by a Ryan pitch. Ryan, who was 46 years old and in the final season of his Hall of Fame career, caught Ventura in a headlock and battered him.

“He has done a great job,” Ventura said. “It’s nice to say ‘Hey, congratulations.’ It wasn’t anything more than that.”