Product Description
Celebrate the long, illustrious career of all-star baltimore orioles shortstop cal ripken jr - a skilled and gracious competitor who redefined not only his position, but shows sportsmanship and class, making his a favorite among fans and other players alike.
Amazon.com
Baltimore Orioles Legends: Cal Ripken Jr. Collector's Edition captures one of the most electrifying moments in modern television: Ripken's breaking of one of sport's most unbreakable records, Lou Gehrig's streak of 2130 consecutive games played. The irony is that the record itself is not that exciting--just carrying your lunch pail to work every day--and barring some bizarre weather event or freak injury, everyone knew it was going to happen at Camden Yards on September 6, 1996, and the game unfolded pretty normally, other than guests such as Earl Weaver arriving in the broadcast booth to ramble about Ripken. But as soon as the game became official and Ripken grew tired of basking in the applause, he took an impromptu victory lap around the stadium slapping hands with the fans, and the ESPN broadcast crew had the rare insight to stay silent and let the moment speak for itself.
But Ripken didn't stop at 2131, and neither does this six-disc set. It has four other complete and significant games, including a 1996 three-homer game vs. Seattle, game 1 of the 1996 ALDS against Cleveland, a six-for-six performance against the Braves in 1999, and the 2001 All-Star Game in which he was voted the MVP (and starting AL shortstop Alex Rodriguez playfully pushed him back to his original position to start the game). On the last disc is a one-hour documentary from 2001, The Iron Man's Legendary Career, recapping his career (early quote: "I want to get used to playing every day") with interviews by Ripken, Earl Weaver, Fred Lynn, and peer shortstops Alex Rodriguez, Omar Vizquel, Derek Jeter, and Nomar Garciaparra. More interviews and game clips round out the package for one of the most-respected and classiest figures in sports history. --David Horiuchi
