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Replying to Thread: It's not just any day that you meet your hero
Created On Saturday 2, December, 2006 1:38 PM by ripkenintheminors

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ripkenintheminors
Collector

Posts: 2272
Joined: Nov 2006

Saturday December 02, 2006 1:38 PM

I grew up a fan of Cal Ripken, Jr. One of my most special cards to this day is a 1982 Topps RC that I traded a box of basketball cards for. I had always hoped that I would someday get a chance to meet Cal, even if it was just enough time to say thank you. The college I attended has an annual benefit dinner every December. 100% of the money goes to student scholarships. The highlight of the night is a speech provided by a national personality.

Several months ago I received a ballot asking for my vote on who the speaker should be for the dinner. On the list was my hero, Cal Ripken, Jr. Ripken made the first cut and advanced to the final round of voting. I placed my vote and waited and hoped. After all, how cool would it be for your favorite player to come to where you went to college, especially a small University with enrollment at/under 2,000. I received an e-mail that made my day when I received word that Cal had been selected and confirmed to speak at the event. Not only did my wife and I purchase a sponsorship, the University gave me media access.

I couldn't be more pleased with how the evening went. Unfortunately the media session did not last long at all. I learned pretty quick that Cal makes sure to give a very thorough answer to all of his questions. He was asked about his efforts with youth baseball, his future entry to the Hall of Fame and for his thoughts about McGwire as a possible Hall of Famer. I didn't get a chance to ask him a question but I did get the opportunity to meet him at the session, shake hands with him and talk for a minute or two before he left. I had always heard that he always makes sure to make eye contact with everyone he shakes hands with. Sure enough, he did. Although I didn't get to ask a question, I got my wish when I got to say "thank you".

After dinner he gave a speech about his 8 tips to success. Before he spoke he had an intro video that he said that he always shows before he speaks. The music was "Simply the Best" and the video had a list of his awards and video clips of some of his greatest moments. The video even had a clip of him with the Rochester Red Wings, which I appreciated seeing. He talked about conversations he has had with players over the years. He mentioned a conversation with Rick Sutcliffe. He said that he was getting tired of the media attention calling him selfish for continuing to play for the streak despite the fact that he was in a slump. He said that he asked Rick for his advice on whether he should sit out a game. He said that Rick told him that if he missed a game it would be all over the news and it would be even more attention. Rick also told him that his name would be on the obituary page the next day. You see, Rick was the starter the next day and wanted Cal in the lineup. The speech included bits about the streak, his family and his plans for the future.

After the speech he opened the floor for questions. The first person asked about his batting stances and went on to say that "you have had more batting stances than Jim Carrey has faces". Cal was also asked about his thoughts on Interleague and the All-Star format. A question I enjoyed was his favorite moment in his career. He said that his favorite moment(s) was catching the last out of the 1983 World Series and taking the lap around the field when he broke Gehrig's record. He said that he loved the fact that everyone got to see a special t-shirt from his kids that he was wearing under his jersey that night. When asked about the funniest moment, he said he was running for a lazy fly when he tripped over his shoelaces and didn't get to the ball. He said he was embarrassed and got up and looked for any excuse to play it off. To his surprise, he found a golf ball buried in the grass. He picked up the golf ball, held it up and acted like he had tripped on it.

After the speech, Cal went to meet sponsors and pose for pictures. On his way to the photo reception I got to see him again on the way out of the building. Once again, he was very gracious. He also took the time to sign my program from the event:

-------------------------
-Chris

Ripken in the Minors * Ripken in the Minors Facebook Page

Edited: Saturday December 02, 2006 at 1:42 PM by ripkenintheminors