Cal Ripken, Jr., followed in his father, Cal Ripken Sr.’s footsteps. He always wanted to be a ball player, and his dad helped and inspired him, even though he was not always around to see young Cal’s Little League games.

But it was Cal’s hard work that got him there, and once he made it, he never let up.
Despite sometimes being tired, or having aches and pains, he showed up to play every game, and always gave it his all.

On May 30, 1982, Cal started an Orioles game and continued to play in every game that season, winning Rookie of the Year. He went on to play in every single game year after year, and by September 6, 1995, Cal had broken the most unbreakable record in the books: Lou Gherig’s ‘streak’ of 2130 consecutive games. With his 2131st game, Cal became one of the most famous and respected athletes of all time.

JB: What are your earliest memories of playing baseball?

CR: I didn’t start playing organized baseball until I was 8. I remember we had eight games that summer, because we were 8-0.
I was a pitcher part of the time, and a shortstop the rest of the time. I hit .927 and I made one out that whole season.

JB: So at 8 years old, you probably thought to yourself, “I might have a future in this game!”

CR: Well, I knew my talent was a bit above the other kids, but it’s so hard to tell because kids develop at different levels. Sometimes people who don’t seem very good early on just pass you by in high school.

JB: What was it like to grow up with a dad who was in professional baseball?

CR: My dad made it to the big leagues in ‘76, when I was 16. During my Little League years, my dad was in the Minor Leagues; all the kids thought that was cool that I had a dad in baseball. But they really didn’t know much about him, because he wasn’t visible enough. My mom came to 99 percent of my games....my dad didn’t get a chance to see many at all.

JB: Who were your heroes, other than your father?

CR: When I was growing up, the Orioles were a great team, and the Cincinnati Reds were the ‘Big Red Machine’. The key figures I looked up to on the Orioles then were Brooks Robinson, Boog Powell, Frank Robinson, Jim Palmer, and on the Reds were Pete Rose, Tony Perez, and Joe Morgan. Brooks Robinson was probably my overall favorite. He made all those great plays....

JB: Any special coaches when you were a kid?

CR: I think this is a good opportunity to give credit to all the coaches. One of the toughest things is to be a volunteer coach; to give your time and attention and patience to teach little kids baseball. Sometimes it’s not so important that you’re the best manager, or the most knowledgeable at baseball. You’re giving the kids the opportunity to play I had a weird situation, because I had an expert for a dad. He was the “encyclopedia of baseball”, and I was around professional baseball a lot. In many cases, coaches came to me for advice! I knew things about baseball that I couldn’t apply, because my talent level wasn’t there yet. But I knew about the game, about strategies.

Looking back on it, it was a great way to grow up. Baseball seemed to take my dad away from me, but it also brought me into the environment of baseball. Anytime I needed to know about something, I always had someone to ask.

We’re all affected by the environment in which we grow up, and I guess it’s a huge advantage being in a baseball environment for a guy who wants to play.

JB: Besides baseball, what else was your life like?

CR: We were a bit of a nomadic family, because my dad managed in different cities across the country. We relied on each other as a family because when you move, you leave your friends behind and you have to make new friends.

In June, when school was out, my mom would get us in the car and drive us cross country, wherever my dad was. It was a great adventure. We had the chance to see different parts of the country. It gave us the opportunity to learn things.
 

[ Ripkin Interview: Page 1  | Page 2 ]
 

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