Is Alvin native Nolan Ryan more of an Astro or a Ranger?

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- The first thing you notice when you walk up to Globe Life Field in Arlington is a huge statue of Nolan Ryan.

He retired 20 years ago, but his legacy still looms large in Arlington and Houston.

"He's the best pitcher," Rangers fan Robert Davis said. "He's my hero."

The video above is from Nolan Ryan's Hall of Fame speech in 1999.

The Alvin native was signed by the Houston Astros in 1979. Then, 10 years later, he joined the Texas Rangers.

"Growing up in that era as a kid, I was watching the Rangers, and I was watching the Astros. So, he's a Rangers fan in my eyes," Rangers fan Richard Benavides said.

"Depends on who you ask," Astros fan Damon Sebren said. "Nolan is from Alvin. He's an Astro all the way. The Astros never should have let him go, but we made that mistake. He'll always be an Astro."

Both the Astros and Rangers have retired the number 34. And Ryan has worked for both teams, even becoming the Rangers president in 2008.

"Definitely Astro. All day, every day," Astros fan Delina Luna laughed before she was interrupted by a Rangers fan yelling, "He's a Ranger! Nolan Ryan is a Ranger!"

"I think he finished with the Rangers. He pitched a no-hitter with both teams," Rangers fan Dyrke Meyers said. "So, I think he's a Texan at heart and probably a Ranger today."

Ryan holds 51 baseball records. He's pitched seven no-hitters and has 5,714 career strikeouts.

But, it was a Rangers game in 1993 that may have brought about his most memorable moment for fans. Then 26-year-old White Sox player Robin Ventura charged the mound, and Ryan put him in a headlock.

"He was the man! Beat somebody up half his age trying to come at him," Benavides laughed.

"The Ventura situation, that sealed the all-time Ranger situation," Ranger fan Austen Davis added.

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