Cal Ripken Jr. Signed 1980s Era Jersey

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Going Deeper - Cal Ripken Jr.

A harbinger of the future of the shortstop position and a classic throwback to the roots of baseball, Cal Ripken Jr. appeals to modern and vintage fans of the sport alike. Adding to his on-field gifts a mindset that emphasized that no game or moment was too small, even for a star of his stature, few athletes have been more universally appreciated and respected than “The Iron Man.”

Born into a family with great baseball heritage (both his father and brother made it to the bigs), Cal was surrounded by the game from a young age. A product of nearby Aberdeen, he was drafted by the Orioles in 1978 and would debut with The Birds as a third baseman in 1981. Ripken won the starting job at third base in 1982 and on May 29th of that year he was benched for the second half of a double header. Cal would go more than 16 years before missing another Orioles game.

The team quickly found success around the nucleus of Ripken and fellow future hall of fame talents Eddie Murray and Jim Palmer, leading to the team’s third title in 1983. After claiming American League Rookie of the Year honors the season before, Ripken was named AL MVP as he led the league in hits, runs, and doubles while making the switch to shortstop full time. That season carried a number of other firsts for Cal, marking his first of 19 All-Star games, first of eight Silver Slugger awards, and first of 10 seasons playing at least 162 games.

By his second MVP season in 1991, it became clear that Ripken’s eventual record for most consecutive games, a mark that had stood since the interwar years, was a distinct possibility.

After matching a record that had once been thought untouchable the night before, Ripken took the field against the California Angels on September 6, 1995 for his 2,131st consecutive game. In breaking Lou Gehrig’s iron man streak, Cal delivered in story book fashion with a no-doubt home run in the 4th inning that sent Camden Yards into a frenzy. 

Once the game was made official following the top of the fifth inning, the game and the entire country paused as Ripken was showered with a 22-minute standing ovation from the adoring Baltimore fans. A ceaseless serenade that forced the ever-humble Ripken out of the dugout to greet the crowd seven times ended with a memorable gallup around the entire perimeter of the park where he shook hands with fans, teammates, and awestruck Angels players. Baseball historians consider his record breaking moment to be among the most memorable in the history of the game. In the wake of a protracted labor battle in 1994 between owners and players, his streak is considered by many to have “saved baseball.”

Hall of Fame player and manager Joe Torre said “Cal is a bridge, maybe the last bridge, back to the way the game was played.” In his footsteps, other powerful mold-breaking shortstops such as Alex Rodriguez and Nomar Garciaparra would follow but never has there been another player in any sport who can top the day-in-day-out longevity and spirit of perseverance he embodied.