The Ripken years

THE RIPKEN YEARS

Weaver's vision starts it all

Earl Weaver saw things in Cal Ripken that others didn't. Ripken ended 1981 and began 1982 as a major-league third baseman who could not even hit his weight. But Weaver saw a shortstop. He saw a star. He saw a player whom he refused to return to Triple-A Rochester and insisted on playing every single day.

THE RIPKEN YEARS

Kid brings glory to vets

They had known him since he was a kid. His father had managed them in the minors or coached them in the majors. They needed the kid.

THE RIPKEN YEARS

Out one era, into another

A teary-eyed Jim Palmer insisted he could still pitch at a May 15 news conference announcing his release. He gamely tried to field questions but broke down before answering the first one. Then he dashed from the podium.

THE RIPKEN YEARS

From Lynn, a healthy respect

Fred Lynn and Cal Ripken had a lot in common. They won the American League's Rookie of the Year and MVP awards more quickly than anybody else. They experienced World Series play early in their careers. They hit home runs and played hard in the field.

THE RIPKEN YEARS

Hard lesson: learning to lose

It didn't matter if it were cards, pingpong, tape ball or clubhouse wrestling, Cal Ripken liked to win. So did the handful of holdovers from the team's glory years -- Eddie Murray, Mike Flanagan, Scott McGregor, Mike Boddicker and Tippy Martinez. As long as they had been playing baseball, they were winners.

THE RIPKEN YEARS

Family ties bind season

It should have been Cal Ripken's finest hour. His father, Cal Sr., was his manager. His brother, Bill, was his double-play partner. They were the first father-son trio in history and the envy of their Orioles teammates.

THE RIPKEN YEARS

False spring, lost season

He didn't say much. Six games into the 1988 season, his father, Cal Ripken Sr., was fired as the Orioles manager. It erased 31 years of service to one organization and ended a family dream.

THE RIPKEN YEARS

Back into winning swing

He set the tone for the season with one swing of the bat. Cal Ripken's three-run homer off Boston Red Sox ace Roger Clemens helped produce a 5-4, Opening Day victory.

THE RIPKEN YEARS

At shortstop, a glove story

Jim Palmer and Mark Belanger did a double take the first time they saw Cal Ripken the potential major-leaguer hustle out to third base at Miami Stadium. It was nothing like their encounters with Ripken the toddler, Ripken the teen-ager or Ripken the coach's son.

THE RIPKEN YEARS

Booking trip to Cooperstown

The middle of the 1990 season was the nadir of Cal Ripken's career. He was hitting .209 in mid-June, and, for a time, he thought he was through.

THE RIPKEN YEARS

Like Brooks, an Oriole for life

He could have chased Lou Gehrig's record while wearing pinstripes. That's how much uncertainty accompanied his contract negotiations. But after 333 days, an agreement was reached on Aug. 24, 1992, and Cal Ripken was an Oriole for life.

THE RIPKEN YEARS

Collision course with history

He is criticized almost as infrequently as he suffers a serious injury. That's why it was such a shock when Cal Ripken was taken to task by San Francisco Giants coach Bobby Bonds, who denounced Ripken's consecutive-games streak.

THE RIPKEN YEARS

Strike nearly strands streak

If not for the strike, Matt Williams or Frank Thomas might hold major-league baseball's single-season home run record and Tony Gwynn might be the most recent .400 hitter.

THE RIPKEN YEARS

Streak honored in every respect

Standing ovations at Fenway Park and Yankee Stadium, autograph requests from opposing teams and news conferences in every major-league city. Cal Ripken has engendered at least one thing from fans, players and the media: respect.

THE RIPKEN YEARS

At one of baseball's most demanding positions, is Cal Ripken coming up short?

Cal Ripken still thinks he can play shortstop. But others in baseball -- including Orioles general manager Pat Gillick -- aren't so sure.

THE RIPKEN YEARS

Ripken: Bring back same team, manager

Cal Ripken may not have many more chances to return to play in the postseason, but he wants at least one more chance to do it with the same team that went wire-to-wire to win the American League East and came within two games of reaching the World Series.

THE RIPKEN YEARS

After 2,632 consecutive games, Iron Man takes a seat

The Streak died last night of natural causes. It was 2,632.

THE RIPKEN YEARS

Back surgery ends season early

ARLINGTON, Texas -- No longer able to withstand the pain and numbness that have followed him much of this year, Orioles third baseman Cal Ripken will undergo back surgery this morning, ending his season.

O's: Happy ending brings thoughts of new story in 2001

Mike Hargrove met with his ballclub yesterday after a 7-3 victory over the New York Yankees completed his first season as Orioles manager. Left fielder Delino DeShields was among the players who spoke up. The messages were the same, aimed squarely at the individuals who would be trying to prevent another fourth-place finish in 2001.