Dallas ? Former Texas Rangers pitcher Nolan Ryan was stopped Tuesday as he tried to board a plane at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport with a knife in his carry-on luggage, an official said Wednesday.

Ryan told officials he did not know the knife was in his carry-on bag. He was not arrested and was allowed to continue his trip after officials confiscated the knife, which had a 31â4-inch blade.

Andrea McCauley, spokeswoman for the Transportation Security Administration, said she could confirm the incident but referred all questions to airport officials.

“We did what we would do with any other passenger,” she said. “It was above 3 inches. If it’s above that length we contact airport police and hand it over to them.”

Airport spokeswoman Leslie Schneiweiss said the knife was discovered about 8:50 a.m. at a TSA checkpoint.

“Airport police responded : and no law-enforcement action was taken,” she said. “He didn’t know he had it. It was in a bag he was carrying. The lining was torn in the bag, and it was in the ripped lining.”

Schneiweiss would not say where Ryan was headed.

TSA took the knife, she said.

“He voluntarily surrendered the knife. The entire pocketknife was 7 inches. The blade was 31â4 inches long,” she said.

McCauley said confiscated weapons are turned over to the state of Texas.

It is unlawful for passengers to carry weapons onto planes, but knives and unloaded guns are permissible inside checked luggage.

Ryan was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1999 after a 27-year career, which included an eight-year stint with the Astros in the 1980s. After playing for the Texas Rangers from 1989 to 1993, Ryan left baseball as the game’s all-time strikeout leader with 5,714.

In 1995, Gov. George W. Bush appointed Ryan, an outdoor enthusiast, to a six-year term on the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission.

Guillen miffed at Marte

Kansas City, Mo. – Chicago White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen questions whether Damaso Marte is really hurt and criticized the reliever for showing up late for a game last weekend.

“If Marte’s not ready to help this team, he can have a nice trip to the Dominican Republic by himself,” Guillen said Wednesday.

Marte’s sore neck was examined Wednesday in Chicago by team physician Dr. Charles Bush-Joseph, and the team said Marte has a strained muscle on his upper back.

“He said Marte is fine. He’s 100 percent to go,” Guillen said after learning of the doctor’s diagnosis. “It makes you wonder if the injury was mentally or physically. If the injury was mental, it’s a shame because that kid has better stuff than a lot of people in this game.”

Marte, a left-handed reliever, is 3-3 with a 3.43 ERA in 60 appearances. He has not pitched since Sept. 7, when he faced two Kansas City batters and hit them both. On Aug. 21, his ERA was 2.78.

“I don’t want this kid just to make an excuse that he was hurt just because he was giving it up,” Guillen said. “A lot of guys in this game give up home runs, base hits. I don’t want him to use (it) as an excuse to fake an injury.”