Yordano Ventura surprises two kids with visit to lemonade stand

Just a week ago, Kansas City Royals starting pitcher Yordano Ventura was cast as a villain for throwing a 99-mph pitch at Baltimore Orioles’ slugger Manny Machado that touched off a brawl between the two teams. Now, we’re seeing his softer side.

Ventura, who was suspended for nine games for his role in that fight, stunned two brothers in Overland Park, Kan., this week when he stopped by their lemonade stand. They have pictures to prove it, forever earning bragging rights among their fellow neighborhood lemonade stand operators. Rahmeen Hirsch told the story to FOX4 news in Kansas City.

“My brother had no idea who he was, and then I looked at him, I stared at him, and I said, ‘Yordano Ventura?’ And he was like yeah, and he gave me a fist bump.”

Ventura not only paid over the kids’ asking price for his lemonade, he also autographed a baseball and agreed to take photographs with the boys. The Hirsch brothers were also selling baseball cards at their lemonade stand. No word on whether Ventura bought any.

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Kyle Ringo is a contributing writer to Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @KyleRingo