Brett Favre’s self-serving return to the NFL brings to mind the way the insufferable Roger Clemens kept on unretiring from baseball, down to the aversion to both preseason play and close shaves. But the continued mystique around Favre also brings to mind a less-obvious comparison – Cal Ripken, Jr.
Favre is known for playing through the pain – and biceps tears and concussions – to achieve his 269-game consecutive starts streak, the most ever by an NFL quarterback. And Ripken, of course, was known for The Streak, where he played in 2632 consecutive games. When in 1995, Ripken broke Lou Gehrig’s record of 2130 consecutive games played, the Orioles’ shortstop was credited as saving baseball after the previous year’s strike. Fans later voted the game as MLB’s Most Memorable Moment.
Although The Streak is one of baseball’s most hallowed records, it really shouldn’t be. It’s like making the student who had perfect attendance the school valedictorian. Because contrary to all the grandeur surrounding Ripken’s numbers, The Streak wasn’t quite the selfless, blue-collar achievement of lore. In fact, it very likely cost the Orioles at least one playoff berth.
Let’s look at Ripken’s career numbers. He won Rookie of the Year in 1982, and helped lead the Orioles to their 1983 World Series championship with his MVP season, where he slugged 27 homers, drove in 102 runs, and batted .318. He also led the league in hits (211) and doubles (47.)
But that championship was the only ring the Orioles ever won with Ripken. For most of the 80s, Ripken continued to be a very good hitter. However, the grind of The Streak was starting to take its toll by the end of the decade.
Peter Handrinos, author of “The Truth About Ruth: Yankees Myths, Legends and Lore” (Triumph Books, 2009) makes the case that Ripken’s inability to rest arguably kept the team out of the playoffs at least one year. Handrinos notes that in September 1989, Ripken hit just .198. “Ripken’s late season meltdown,” Handrinos notes, “coincided with the Orioles’ tumble from first place to two games out in the standings.”
While Ripken did have another MVP season in 1991, his numbers continued to tumble in the 1990s. If he had gotten a day or two off here and there, his numbers would most likely have been better. But the Streak ended up hindering Ripken – and the team.
Although Ripken did have over 3000 hits and 400 homers, his career average numbers of .276/23 HRs/91 RBI, even for a shortstop, were hardly worthy of being named on 98.53% percent of all Hall of Fame ballots. But The Streak is what made him an icon.
As Handrinos’ book notes, Brooks Robinson, Frank Robinson, and Pete Rose all “played 95 percent or more of their teams’ games for a decade or more.” But, the author writes, “All three eventually decided that a brief rest, maybe a half-dozen games per year, was needed for their productivity in the long term….The smart move is to take a step back, then take a couple steps forward.”
But not Saint Cal of Baltimore. As Handrinos writes:
“The unstated but unmistakeable claim is that Ripken was, by some mysterious means, an exception to all that wear and tear, that he kept on keeping on because he was somethow tougher, more willful, and more joyous than the rest.”
Exactly. And Ripken’s website describes him this way:
“Ripken’s name has become synonymous with strength, character, endurance and integrity. His philosophy of working hard, playing with passion and enjoying the game has made a tremendous impact on the sport and on fans everywhere.”
With all that self-serving talk of passion and integrity, there’s no mention of one of the biggest factors to help Ripken – plain old luck. He was blessed to be injury-free for most of his career.
And as Handrinos writes, what “really set Ripken apart from Gehrig, and virtually everyone else who played major league baseball, was the fact that he had the leverage to impose his consecutive game streak on his ballclub.”
Absolutely. As early as 1993, even some in the Orioles’ camp were starting to grouse; Barry Bonds’ father, of all people, was the first to openly suggest that it was selfish. Bobby Bonds, who was then a Baltimore coach, thought the streak was “hurting the team” by “showing that personal goals are more important.” He said, “If I were his manager, he’d be out of there. He wants to break Lou Gehrig’s record, even if it’ll cost Baltimore the pennant.”
The Orioles continued to be concerned with how much The Streak took away from The Team. As Buster Olney described the situation for the New York Times in 1998:
With other teams, the pecking order ranks as follows: owner, baseball executives, manager, players. With the Orioles, Ripken loomed over everyone, untouchable because of the magnitude of his record and the popularity it provided him. His recent managers, from Phil Regan to Davey Johnson to Ray Miller, never seriously considered benching him.
The idea was bandied about constantly by club officials. In a meeting before the All-Star Game break in July, an Orioles official announced his belief that the team would never win a World Series championship until Ripken’s record and corollary autonomy ended. ”This record has nothing to do with the team,” the official told others. ”Its only meaning is to Cal.”
Later, Ripken accused Bonds and others who criticized The Streak of not quite getting what he was trying to achieve:
“Certain comments were made during the course of the Streak by different people who didn’t understand the full context of me playing every day. When [Bonds] made that comment I remember thinking that everyone is entitled to their opinion. To me it was never about personal goals or selfishness…. It was about the ultimate feeling that you had a responsibility to the team. I think selfish would be taking yourself out when your team needs you the most.
It’s too bad somebody in Orioleland didn’t have the power to step in a long time ago and stop The Streak, before it became The Thing That Ate Baltimore.
But give Ripken this – although he had a season-long retirement tour in 2001, at least he stayed retired. That’s a lesson Brett Favre has yet to learn.
Photo by Joe Shlabotnik
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Lisa Swan
Lisa Swan, a lifelong Yankee fan, grew up in Passaic, N.J., where her favorite player was the talented but insecure Reggie Jackson. Today she lives on Staten Island, where her favorite player is the talented but insecure Alex Rodriguez. A former senior new media editor for ...
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Heath says:
What everyone seems to forget about Ripken's streak is that he was easily the best choice to play shortstop, offensively and defensively, every day he came to the ballpark. In the days before Nomar, A-Rod and Jeter, a bat like Ripken's was invaluable for a shortstop and his glove was top notch, one of the best of his generation at short. I have always failed to see how the Baltimore Orioles would have been better off with Manny Alexander or Tim Hulett in the lineup. Batting slump or not, Ripken was always contributing stellar defense. A run saved is at least worth an RBI.
I have also failed to see how a game or two off would suddenly rejuvenate a "tired" player. If that was truly the case, one or two games aren't going to help. Ripken often had a better second half than first half over the course of his streak. He often left the game in blowouts to get some extra rest. To assume that he would have had better numbers with a couple of extra games off is quite a leap. Again, this argument forgets Cal's defense.
There wasn't much juicy to write about Cal over the course of his Hall of Fame career so writers fell back on two criticisms: 1) Cal's streak is hurting the team and 2) Cal is not a fiery leader and that's why the Orioles lose. Both were simple, silly and designed to sell papers, not provide analysis. Olney and Ken Rosenthal loved these angles.
Peter Handrinos (an unabashed Yankee fan) makes the assertion that Ripken's poor September cost the Orioles the AL East in 1989. What he fails to remember is that the 1989 Orioles were a ragtag team of rookies and journeyman. They were not expected to contend at all and played above their head all year. To blame their collapse on Ripken's streak is ludicrous. Trading away Mike Boddicker and Eddie Murray (for minor leaguers and spare parts) in 1988 doomed the '89 season before it started. Management did not believe in the team and started to rebuild. The Streak had nothing to do with it. Handrinos seems to want to enhance Lou Gehrig's streak by diminishing Cal's.
And Bobby Bonds' criticism is hilarious. Bonds was a hard drinking partier during his playing days and aged badly as a result, possibly ruining a shot at a Hall of Fame caliber career. Ripken was a diligent trainer and kept in top shape during his career. Which player was truly selfish? Which player was letting his team down? Ripken slept at night...you don't need as much rest when you do it at night.
Yes, Ripken was lucky to escape injury but as Seneca said, "Luck is where preparation meets opportunity." Ripken put himself in the best possible position to play every day. To compare Gehrig's streak and Ripken's in silly anyway; to even come close to Gehrig's streak, let alone break it, at shortstop instead of first base is far more impressive.
There’s certainly some room to wonder how historically important the streak was but to paint Cal as selfish in this regard is way off base, no pun intended.
El-Kal says:
The problem with this argument is that it puts too much emphasis on one "late season collapse". So he had a bad month? If he had gotten maybe 10 or so more hits that month, his average would have probably been pretty good, and we wouldn't be having this discussion. So basically, you are letting about ten hits sully the excellence Cal Ripken achieved over the course of his incredible career. He caused the Orioles to miss the playoffs? How about this: in 1983 he helped them win the a World Series. Overall, he did far more great for Baltimore than he did any harm. Given what some athletes demand of their employers, an insistence to play every day is not that bad. And imagine the backlash if they had rested him. Do you really think he was what was holding Baltimore back? So maybe and theoretically he caused them to miss the playoffs once. Big deal. One piddly playoff appearance pales in comparison to having one of the most celebrated players of all time in your organization. It would only have take one benching to end all that. Barry Bondy calling the man selfish is sort of an "I rest my case" moment.
Lisa Swan says:
Heath and El-Kal, thanks for your responses. My issue with Cal is that he would have been a better player - and better for the team - if this record hadn't overwhelmed everything else. Contrary to being a selfless thing, it was selfish. And other than 1983, the O's won nothing with Cal.
And Heath, my kudos to you for continuing to keep the faith with the Orioles blog. Nice work!
Bmored82 says:
If you honestly believe that Cal Ripken's streak cost the Orioles anything than obviously the only knowledge of the Orioles is what you stumbled across to write this article. The Orioles have been hindered by poor ownership and a bad front office. I challenge you to find a shortstop pre-Ripken with better offensive numbers not to mention a few gold gloves to boot. 3000 hits and 400 home runs is rare for anyone let alone a shortstop. So you scoured the Internet and found the three negative comments about Ripken? Why don't you ask some of his teammates what kind of baseball player Cal was. Bobby Bonds calling someone else selfish, that's funny. My guess would be if you talked to anyone close to the organization, you would hear the same thing. Cal Ripken Jr was one of the last true ball players. But then if you actually did a little investigative journalism, what you would turn up would wipe out all the shock value of this ridiculous column. And then you wouldn't even have the benefit of people randomly seeing a ludicrous headline on google. Actually now it makes sense, I guess it's easier to get people to read that way when you say something ridiculous than actually being a journalist. How dare you?
Bmored82 says:
Ps this should have been filed under your nonsense section
bmored82 says:
pss, Shouldn't it be noted that you are a Yankee fan, and the Yankees biggest rival during the 90's was Cal Ripken's Orioles. Biased much?
Tony says:
Yes, in today's culture and society, it is not surprising that you denigrate the achievement of Cal Ripken. You don't seem to understand that baseball is not just about stats, it is a cultural phenomenon that produces heroes and villains. At its best, it is the closest we have to an American mythology.
Cal Ripken is an icon BECAUSE he came to play every day. His appeal is about dedication and passion and joy and willingness to work hard. In any area of life, it is easy to demean the seemingly simple accomplishment, until we try to emulate it ourselves. I hope to try to contribute in my work life with even a tiny portion of the joy and passion that Cal brought to his.
If Cal had been a Yankee, I am quite sure that you would be singing a very different tune.
Your comment about Cal being "selfish" just reflects your own bias and lack of baseball knowledge...who exactly do you think those Oriole teams should have put out there? Manny Alexander? Even in his worst slumps, Cal was a two time Gold Glove shortstop who was tremendously reliable in the field.
This attitude on the field of working hard, of playing the game the Oriole Way, this is the same attitude that produced the Cal who signed every autograph for every kid after every game for hours and hours and hours for 19 years, day in and day out. Cal's achievement was a tribute to his being raised in baseball by his father, Cal Ripken, Sr. who was part of the glory days of the Oriole Way.
If you had ever been to Memorial Stadium or Camden Yards and seen many other players blow off this part of their responsibility, you would maybe have a different understanding of Cal's multi-layered contributions.
Here is an article that might help you a little bit in terms of understanding Cal's drive and competitive nature.
http://images.si.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1139966/index.htm
Josh says:
Wow, the man achieved a monumental task and provided hope and inspiration for young players and old that steriods and enhancers are not used by all baseball players. Be thankful we have at least Cal Ripken continue to teach young players baseball and how to be a part of a team. He is my hero!