(new info in graf 2)

The mother of U.S. baseball Hall of Famer Cal Ripken, Jr. is safely back home after an apparent kidnapping.

Police say 74-year-old Vi Ripken was taken from her home in Aberdeen, Maryland, north of Baltimore, Tuesday morning. They say an armed man forced her into her own car and drove her around the area.

Vi Ripen was found unharmed, with her hands bound, in the backseat of her car near her home about 24 hours later. Police say there was no demand for ransom and that a motive for the abduction is unknown. As of Wednesday evening, no arrest had been made in the case.

A Ripken family spokesman called this a very trying time for the family.

Cal Ripken, Jr. played for the Baltimore Orioles from 1982 until 2001. He played in 2,632 consecutive games — a record that baseball experts say may never be broken. His brother Bill also was a major league player and his father Cal, Sr. was an Orioles manager and coach.

This was the second high-profile kidnapping of a baseball-related figure in the past year. Washington Nationals catcher Wilson Ramos was abducted from his mother's home in Venezuela in November. He was held for three days before security forces rescued him.

Authorities say the kidnappers had planned to demand a large ransom.