The two-time MVP and baseball Iron Man officially announced his retirement today, effective after this season, to spend more time with his wife and two young children as well as devote more time to his youth baseball project in Aberdeen.
"The reality is that players can't play forever," said Ripken, who will turn 41 this August.
It only seemed like Ripken could. On Sept. 6, 1995, Ripken broke Lou Gehrig's streak of 2,130 consecutive games played. He extended the streak to 2,632 games before voluntarily sitting out a game on Sept. 20, 1998. But back problems and the Orioles' rebuilding effort have limited his playing time in recent years. Still, Ripken said that didn't factor into his decision.
"The last couple of years I've been noticing that I miss being away from home. I miss my kids' activities," Ripken said today at a crowded news conference in the warehouse at Camden Yards. "When I was hurt, I was getting into other things Ā my youth initiatives, my teachings Ā I found out Ā it energized me the same way baseball did."
Few were surprised by Ripken's decision to retire. Many in the baseball world, citing his decreased playing time and performance, expected this to be his last season. His wife of 14 years, Kelly, also knew it was coming.
"It's a little scary not knowing what the future holds, but it'll be exciting having him around," said Kelly Ripken, who sat next to Cal at the press conference. "The kids are thrilled."
Ripken has a daughter, Rachel, 11, and a son, Ryan, 7, whom he will get to see more often.
"The baseball schedule is not family friendly," said Ripken, whose father, Cal Sr., was a player, coach and manager and was often away from the family when Cal was a child. "I'd like to be closer [to the kids] and be more a part of their lives."
The timing of the announcement is a bit curious. Ripken has always reluctantly accepted the spotlight, which will certainly shine brightly on him for the final four months of the season. "The idea of a farewell tour has never really sat well with me," he said.
The Orioles are scheduled to play their final home game on Sept. 23 against the New York Yankees, and the last game of the regular season is on Sept. 30 at Yankee Stadium in New York. Tickets for the final two games at Camden Yards are sold out, and the team announced that fewer than a half million tickets are available for the Orioles' 46 remaining home games.
The baseball world may get a chance to say farewell to Ripken at next month's All-Star Game in Seattle. Ripken currently leads the balloting at third base and appears headed to the mid-summer classic for the 19th time.
"It would be pretty special to say good-bye that way," Ripken said.
Ripken's announcement came two days after he visited the scene of what he calls his greatest baseball achievement. The Orioles just wrapped up a series at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia, where Ripken caught the last out of the World Series in 1983.
"Just to be a part of something that special really stands out," he said.
It stands out above many accolades he has received in his 21-year Hall of Fame career.
Ripken was named Rookie of the Year in 1982 and vividly recalls the pennant race of that year when the Milwaukee Brewers beat the Orioles in the final game of the year to capture the American League East crown. In 1983 he was the American League Most Valuable Player and helped lead the team to the world championship. He won his second MVP Awards in 1991, a year he termed "a season without a slump." He set a record with only three errors in 1990 and won two Gold Glove Awards. He and former teammate Eddie Murray are two of only seven players to accumulate 3,000 career hits and 400 home runs.
Then there was The Streak.
Ripken is perhaps best known for breaking Lou Gehrig's seemingly unbreakable record of 2,130 consecutive games played, becoming a national icon in the process and almost single-handedly repairing baseball's relationship with its fans after the 1994 player strike. Fittingly, Ripken announced his retirement on Gehrig's birthday.
And, of course, all of it was done in an Orioles uniform.
"As far back as my memory will allow me, baseball and the Orioles were it," Ripken said. "I feel lucky to play in the city. This is the best place to play and the best fans to play in front of."