Cal Ripken Jr.

He was named the Harford County Most Valuable Player (MVP) while helping Aberdeen become county champions for the first time since 1959.

During his senior year, Ripken again had a strong season, lifting his batting average to .688 at one point and posting a 0.79 ERA with 45 strikeouts over his first 26 innings.

In the playoffs, Ripken pitched the state championship game against Thomas Stone High School.

The Eagles trailed 3–1 when Ripken, noting that rain was coming and that the game would be canceled and replayed because the Eagles had not yet played the fourth inning, made nine throws to first base to ensure the game would be replayed.

When the game was played the next week, Ripken struck out 17, allowed two hits, and threw a complete game as Aberdeen won the state championship.

Calvin Edwin Ripken Jr. (born August 24, 1960), nicknamed "the Iron Man", is an American former baseball shortstop and third baseman who played his entire 21-season career in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Baltimore Orioles (1981–2001).

One of his position's most productive offensive players, Ripken compiled 3,184 hits, 431 home runs, and 1,695 runs batted in during his career, and he won two Gold Glove Awards for his defense.

He was a 19-time All-Star and was twice named American League (AL) Most Valuable Player (MVP).

Ripken holds the record for consecutive games played (2,632), having surpassed Lou Gehrig's streak of 2,130 that had stood for 56 years and that many deemed unbreakable.

After playing at Aberdeen High School, Ripken Jr. was drafted by the Orioles in the second round of the 1978 MLB draft.

He reached the major leagues in 1981 as a shortstop but moved to third base in 1982, but the following year, he was shifted to shortstop, his long-time position for Baltimore.

That year, Ripken also won the AL Rookie of the Year Award and began his consecutive games played streak.

In 1983, he won a World Series championship over the Philadelphia Phillies and his first AL MVP Award.

One of Ripken's best years came in 1991 when he was named an All-Star, won the Home Run Derby, and was recipient of his first All-Star Game MVP Award, his second AL MVP Award, and first Gold Glove Award.

He broke the consecutive games played record on September 6, 1995, in his 2,131st consecutive game, which fans voted as the league's "most memorable moment" in the history of the game in an MLB.com poll; Ripken voluntarily ended his 17-year streak at 2,632 games before the final home game of the 1998 season.

He switched back to third base for the final five years of his career.

In 2001, his final season, Ripken was named the All-Star Game MVP and was honored with the Commissioner's Historic Achievement Award.

Ripken is considered one of the best shortstops in baseball history.

At 6 ft, 225 lb, he pioneered the way for the success of taller, larger shortstops.

He holds the record for most home runs hit as a shortstop (345), breaking the record previously held by Ernie Banks, and was selected as the starting shortstop for the Major League Baseball All-Century Team.

Ripken is a best-selling author and the President and CEO of Ripken Baseball, Inc., whose goal is to expand the love of baseball from a grassroots level.

Since his retirement, he has purchased three minor league baseball teams.

He has been active in charity work throughout his career and is still considered an ambassador of the game.

He lives in Annapolis, Maryland, and is married to Laura Ripken, née Kiessling, a judge on the Appellate Court of Maryland.

Ripken was born in Havre de Grace, Maryland, the son of Violet Roberta "Vi" Ripken (née Gross) and Cal Ripken Sr.. He has German, English, and Irish ancestry.

Though the Ripkens called Aberdeen, Maryland, their home, they were often on the move because of Cal Sr.'s coaching duties with the Baltimore Orioles organization.

Cal Sr., in fact, was in Topeka, Kansas, with one of his teams when his son was born.

Cal Jr. grew up around baseball and got started in it at a very young age.

He was able to receive instruction from players on his father's teams, most notably Doug DeCinces.

He also got advice from his father, who once remarked to his mother that his questions were better than the ones reporters had.

At the age of three, Ripken knew he wanted to be a ballplayer, and at the age of 10, Ripken "knew the game inside and out".

Ripken and his brother Billy attended Aberdeen High School.

They both played baseball there; Cal also played soccer.

He has two other siblings, Ellen and Fred.

Ripken began his high school career playing second base; his coach, Don Morrison, said, "I was considering moving him to short, but I was unsure if his arm was strong enough."

Despite Morrison's concerns, Ripken did move to shortstop as a sophomore, combining strong fielding with a team-leading 10 runs batted in (RBI).

Needing pitching help, the Aberdeen Eagles began using Ripken as a pitcher as well in his junior year.

He responded by striking out 55 batters in 46 1⁄3 innings pitched with three shutouts while batting .339 with 21 hits and nine RBIs.

In 2007, he was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility with 98.53% of votes, the sixth-highest election percentage ever.

Born in Maryland, Ripken grew up traveling around the United States as his father, Cal Sr., was a player and coach in the Orioles' organization.