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Cal Ripken Jr On The 20th Anniversary Of 2131

Cal Ripken, Jr. is an Orioles and Baltimore legend who holds the MLB record for the most consecutive games played (2,632).

Cal joined Ken and Steve to talk about the anniversary of 2,131, throwing out the first pitch tonight and the struggle of the Orioles lately.

Steve asked Cal what memory stands out to him most from the 2131 game. Cal noted that seeing his dad in the stadium stands out the most. "The one memory I think about all the time was looking up and seeing my dad. I've watched a couple of interviews. George Michael interviewed my dad back in '95 and I hadn't really seen my dad on interview in all that time. I've used this time to go back and listen to them a little bit. It almost seems like it brings him back to me for this moment. Looking up in the skybox and seeing dad and the communication that went through our eyes was pretty special."

Ken asked Cal about the tremendous ovation he received from the fans before the game and the ensuing lap that he took around the field. Cal said of the moment, "I remember [Rafael Palmeiro] mentioning it to me because the ovation kept going on and on and on. I was sensitized, I might have said 'We got to get this game started.' I think Raffi said, 'The only way we get this game started is if you take a lap.' And I said, 'There's no way I'm running around this ballpark.' Then when I came out for the curtain call one time, I think the last time, Bobby [Bonilla] and Rafael came out and physically pushed me down the line. That started the lap and, again, I wasn't sure about what I was doing when I did it, but all of the sudden it made that celebration much more intimate. I guess about a quarter of the way around the ballpark, I decided I didn't care if the game started again."

Many players keep souvenirs from big moments in their careers and Steve asks Cal if there was anything from that game that held on to. Cal responded, "I think I have everything from every minute that I ever played. So, it might not be in the most organized fashion, that I can find it readily but yeah, I have a lot of special mementos from that night. I remember presenting the jersey I was wearing to my kids because I wanted to show them the shirt that was underneath that they gave me in the morning. So that was something that I thought of. It wasn't a formal presentation by any means but we have those memories and some of the things that help spur those memories. Let's put it this way, I don't sleep with them as I remember my life but I have a bunch of mementos."

Cal went on to discuss the role that he played in helping to save the game of baseball after the 1994 strike, the recent links to managing or working in the front office for a major league team, and Manny Machado's move to short stop in last night's game.

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