Cal Ripken Jr. Childhood

Calvin Edwin Ripken Jr. was born on August 24, 1960 in Havre De Grace, MD. He is the son of Violet and Cal Ripken Sr. If there was any kid that was destined to be a Baltimore Orioles player, it was Cal Ripken Jr. He learned the game of baseball from his father, who was a good baseball player. However, he fell short of his dreams of playing professionally due to injuries. Cal Sr. became an employee of the Orioles and young Cal was around the Orioles minor league players a lot. He would often travel with his father to games and behind the scenes. These experiences were as important to his goals as the practicing and playing organized baseball. For Cal, the only thing he wanted to do was play professional baseball, and if given the opportunity, for the Baltimore Orioles.

Cal Ripken Jr. High School Stats and Awards

Ripken Jr. attended Aberdeen High School. He played soccer and baseball. However, his main focus was on the diamond. Cal played various positions in the infield in high school including second base, shortstop and pitcher. During his senior year, his team made the state championship game. Ripken got the call to pitch and his dominant performance powered the team to the state title. All the Maryland kid needed at this point in his life was a major league team to draft him. Not only did he get the call, but it was from his favorite team, the one his father played for, the Orioles!

Cal Ripken Jr. MLB Career Stats and Notes

Ripken made his major league debut for the Orioles on August 10, 1981. He spent his entire career with the Orioles, which lasted 21 seasons. Ripken helped the Orioles win a World Series title in 1983. After the 2001 season, Ripken retired at age 41. The 19-time All Star was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2007.

Cal Ripken Jr. Ironman Streak

A streak record isn’t something most players set out to do or break, especially those that are going to take over SIXTEEN YEARS to accomplish! But that was the case with Cal Ripken Jr. On May 30, 1982, Ripken made a start. The Orioles played the Toronto Blue Jays and the Orioles were shutout 6-0. Who knew at the time he would play in every single game since, stretching across parts of 17 seasons! Thousands of MLB players have come and gone in that time frame. Three different presidents were in office (2 had served parts of two terms), the Oakland Raiders relocated to Los Angeles and came back to Oakland within his streak. And lastly, Ripken’s streak was alive for both the Baltimore Colts and Ravens franchises.

On September 20, 1998, the sports world was shocked when Cal decided to sit out the final home game of the season against the New York Yankees, ending his record-setting streak at 2,632 consecutive games. It’s a record that will probably never be broken.

List of Baseball Hall of Fame Members