This won't come as a surprise to anyone, but Cal Ripken wasn't consumed with being a unanimous selection to the Hall of Fame, or breaking Tom Seaver's record for highest percentage of votes.
"I know that it's a subjective vote in many ways and everybody has their opinions. And I respect everyone's opinion," said Ripken, who received word of his election from Jack O'Connell of the Baseball Writers Association of America.
"When Jack told me on the phone, he tried to give me the stats and I think I was just listening with one ear because I was just really waiting to hear the 'Congratulations and welcome to the Hall of Fame.' To me, though (the numbers) are overwhelming, I really didn't get caught up in wanting to be unanimous or wanting to be the most. I'm very content to just be voted in."
How does he compare today's news to catching the line drive in Philadelphia that ended the 1983 World Series, or 2,131?
"It's a wonderful moment right now and a wonderful feeling," he said. "I've got to tell you, it's still not the same as catching the final out of the World Series, the sense of satisfaciton and joy and fulfillment that came from being part of a world championship team. But this feels awful good.
"It's almost more of an extension of a boyhood dream. You want to be a baseball player in the worst way, and sometimes you fantasize that maybe you'll be good enough to someday make the Hall of Fame. But it's such a fantasy and such a dream that you don't really think about it. And then once you go through and have a pretty good career, realistically you start to understand that there's a potential and there's an opportunity for that."
Switching back to the old Colts, Bert Jones and Howard Schnellenberger will call into The Anita Marks Show between 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. Wednesday on ESPN Radio 1300 and MASN.
Think they might have a few Bob Irsay stories?
