Remembering 2,131

I haven't been able to post here recently as I've been busy with work. But since today is Labor Day, and Labor Day this year happens to fall on September 6, I have the time to remark on the 15th anniversary of Cal Ripken, Jr. playing in his 2,131st consecutive game---breaking the record previously held by Yankee legend Lou Gehrig.

September 6, 1995 was the day I permanently fell in love with sports. By 1995 I was already firmly entrenched as an Orioles fan. My parents had begun preparing me for Cal's inevitable breaking of Gehrig's record sometime that winter, when they taped a Headline News interview with Cal before Spring Training that I must have watched upwards of twenty times in the months leading up September 6. My grandmother in D.C. began to send me clippings about Cal and the Orioles from the local papers in the mail and I was beginning to master the art of reading the daily boxscores in the sports section. On the morning of September 6, I remember delightedly spotting a "HR- Ripken" in the box score from the previous night and reading a short recap of Cal's hitting a home run on the night he tied Lou Gehrig's record.

That night my parents let me stay up and watch the record-breaking game all the way through the 5th inning---long enough to see Cal's home run in the bottom of the fourth and the spontaneous 22-minute standing ovation when the game and record became official in the middle of the 5th inning. When they finally sent me to bed way past my usual bedtime, I lay awake listening to the last innings on the radio and made sure my parents taped the conclusion of the game and the postgame ceremony.

The following morning I remember sitting at my desk in my 2nd Grade classroom, writing the boxscore from Game 2,131 over and over again, etching the names "Ripken," "Bonilla," "Anderson," and "Palmeiro" on the side of my times table worksheets. That afternoon I raced to the den as soon as I got home to pop in the VHS and watch the postgame ceremony my parents had taped. I even recall at one point deciding to memorize Cal's postgame speech, and I still remember bits and pieces of it to this day ("I know that if Lou Gehrig is looking down on tonight, he isn't concerned about someone playing one more consecutive game than he did, but rather he's viewing tonight as just another example of what is good and right about the great American game.").

I recently rewatched the record-breaking moment, thanks to the miracle of YouTube. I guess I've become cynical over the past fifteen years, because I was expecting the moment to come across as more contrived and less magical than I remembered it. To my great surprise, I was wrong. The extremely warm reception from the fans (when will there ever be another game delayed in the middle for a TWENTY-TWO MINUTE standing ovation) comes across as completely genuine. And Cal's iconic lap around the stadium---high-fiving fans, hugging family members, and shaking hands with each of the gracious and classy visiting California Angels---was far from contrived. Cal repeatedly recedes into the dugout but the fans nonetheless continue applauding until finally Rafael Palmeiro and Bobby Bonilla shove him out of the dugout after it becomes clear the fans aren't going to stop anytime soon.

Perhaps the most surprising part of the moment for me was ESPN's broadcast. They don't go to commercial and stay with the broadcast for the entirety of the ovation. And the announcers are virtually silent for the entire 22 minutes, just allowing the moment to sink in---a fact almost shocking given that the play-by-play announcer that night was the loquacious Chris Berman.

The guest list for that night was remarkable. The entire Ripken baseball family was in attendance, including Cal's wife and kids, former manager and father Cal, Sr., and former teammate and brother Billy. An array of Orioles legends showed up, including Earl Weaver, Frank Robinson, and Jim Palmer. In addition, the reclusive "Yankee Clipper" Joe DiMaggio, who had played with Gehrig, was there to witness the record-breaking night. And both President Clinton and Vice President Gore were in attendance---something unlikely to happen again at a sporting event for security reasons. President Clinton was even in the local radio broadcast booth with announcer Jon Miller when Cal homered in the bottom of the 4th (Cal had a way of rising to the occasion) and even essentially called the home run (scroll down for Miller's version of the story).

I was too young to really grasp it at the time, but that record was perhaps most important because of its timing. The 1994 strike had led to the cancellation of the World Series, and many fans had begun to sour on baseball. While today popular memory credits Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa's chase of Roger Maris' single-season home run record in 1998 as the event that "saved" baseball, 2,131 came first and at a time when fans' loyalty to baseball was much weaker. Ripken's record was something that working-class fans could identify with and appreciate---a man who came to work every day for 13 straight years---and Cal's work ethic and loyalty to his hometown organization and fanbase endeared him to fans at a time when the relationship between the fans and the players and owners was particularly strained. And while the 1998 home run chase has since been tainted by accusations of steroid use, Ripken's record remains untainted and pure.

Fifteen years later, I'm still madly in love with sports. I guess September 6 is almost an anniversary of sorts. I've seen so many great games and incredible moments in sports over the past fifteen years. But none will ever top 2,131.