Cal Ripken, Jr.
Cal Ripken, Jr.
Calvin Edwin "Cal" Ripken Jr., nicknamed "The Iron Man", is an American former baseball shortstop and third baseman who played 21 seasons in Major League Baseballfor the Baltimore Orioles. One of his position's most offensively productive players, Ripken compiled 3,184 hits, 431 home runs, and 1,695 runs batted in during his career, and he won two Gold Glove Awards for his defense. He was a 19-time All-Star and was twice named American LeagueMost Valuable Player. Ripken is best known for...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionBaseball Player
Date of Birth24 August 1960
CityHavre De Grace, MD
CountryUnited States of America
I think the cloud of suspicion has been hanging over baseball for a while. I think there has been some positive things that have come out of that. There has been a drug test policy that was been implemented that got the blessings of both the Players Association and MLB. They are trying to maintain the integrity of this sport and trying to get it back, but that cloud I think will hang over a little longer.
The last thing you want to do is go down in the history of All-Star game competition as the only injury (his nose was broken by Roberto Hernandez) sustained during the team picture.
I think Nick Markakis is a perennial All-Star, and nobody knows about him. I think people are learning about how good he is.
By far, the best moment of my big league career was when I caught the last out at the World Series.
You can keep going on and on about the interactions of people, which makes it a great drama and great event ,and you'll always hold that special, but if you're looking at a baseball moment, the feeling you get when you win the World Series by far exceeds anything else in the game that you're able to do.
Stubbornness usually is considered a negative; but I think that trait has been a positive for me.
I always thought being a gamer and someone who had a sense of responsibility to the game and to my teammates was the honorable thing.
The best thing you can do in the whole world is to play baseball. That's a lucky job... The passion for baseball is always going to be there.
We consider ourselves the luckiest fans on the face of the Earth.
I think baseball has moved on in many ways and the focus on the competitions on the field is really what the game is all about. It seems to be healthy. It seems more people are watching it.
When things happen to you in the worst way, you live with it, you go over it, you think, 'What else could I have done?
Different styles work for different guys... If you can handle shortstop and hit, teams will find a way to pencil you into the lineup.
So many good things have happened to me in the game of baseball. When I do allow myself a chance to think about it, it's almost like a storybook career. You feel so blessed to have been able to compete this long.
I take pride in the fact that you are able to make some good contributions to the sport at certain times.