Simple cards like this mean a lot to me.
My dad was a card collector and since he died while I was super young, I sort of always found cards fascinating and it did not take me long to begin to enjoy cards and start my own collection.
I'm quite certain that this Cal Ripken card was his. My dad was a big Orioles and Cal Ripken fan. I've had this card forever, and I wasn't born at this point in time so I'm pretty sure this was his. Owning and holding, and continuing to collect cards feels like a tradition I guess. Like my dad's interests live on through me.
Also, when I was a kid, and looked at my collection or whatever, held the cards, I felt like I was literally holding a piece of the past which, I guess I was. The font on the cards, the picture quality, everything. I felt like a sports historian, or a regular historian.
Cal Ripken himself is one of the greatest baseball players ever, and he owns one of the most impressive records in sports history, as the man played in 2,632 straight pro games for the Orioles. That is 16+ straight full seasons of baseball. The record is considered unbreakable.
Here is Cal breaking the streak in 1995, he even homered on the night. At least my dad witnessed this!
Here, the streak ends in 1998. My dad never witnessed this ending, I actually don't find that to be a very sad thought. Kind of bittersweet, but more on the sweet side.
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Cal Ripken Jr. was a savage. Ripken was a World Series Champ, a 2x MVP and 19x All-Star just to name a few of his other elite accomplishments. Ripken was a First Ballot Hall of Famer in 2007. I was actually in Cooperstown in the summer of '07. Crazy how that works. I bet my dad was happy.
The entire Ripken family is basically baseball royalty, and Orioles royalty. Ripken's little brother and father were all Orioles together in the 80's and early 90's. Ripken's dad, Cal Senior, was a coach and his brother Billy was a fellow player.
In 1983, Ripken Jr. and his father won the freaking World Series together! Billy was not a pro at that time.
Ripken's 431st and final homerun of his career. Wish my dad could have seen it. What a cool moment.
Ripken's last at-bat. The man was a big deal! Ripken retired playing 3,001 games all with the Orioles and he had 3,148 hits. The guy had just an iconic career.
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I haven't made a post in the community in awhile, glad to see it's semi-active!
