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| 1982 Topps, #21, Cal Ripken, Jr., Autographed |
The Iron Man, Cal Ripken, Jr.
Last week, I met one of the giants of the sports world - Baltimore Orioles superstar, Cal Ripken, Jr., also known as Iron Man.
Ripken's streak of 2,632 straight games played is a feat to which there is no equal and is one that surely will stand for all-time.
Not only was Ripken durable, he was one of the best shortstops to ever step onto the diamond. Ripken played for 21 seasons as a shortstop and third baseman for the Baltimore Orioles, and was a 19-time all-star, 8-time Silver Slugger, 2-time American League MVP, and a World Series champion.
As a newbie to the National Convention - or "The National" as folks call it - I was not aware how autograph signings were handled. For the most part, the For the most part, they are handled well, though depending on the personality of the athlete signing autographs, the experience is generally pretty sterile with very little conversation and often, not even a handshake.
Ripken, however, was very different. He greeted each person, shook hands, and engaged everyone - particularly the kids - in conversation. He was known for staying late after every home game to sign autograph after autograph, and 12 years after retiring, he's still treating fans with grace and respect.
When I handed Ripken my 1982 Topps card, I told him that this was a card that I pulled from a wax pack in 1982 when I was 14. I told him that it had been a prized card in my collection (I actually have three copies) since then. He thanked me for the compliment, but them immediately placed his fingers over the pictures of the players on either side of him and asked me what their names were. I told him I honestly didn't know. He then started telling me about both of these men and ended with saying that even though neither of them had the same baseball career he had, they had gone on to have great lives and do great things and that fans should know about them, too.
Talk about class.
One thing that made the whole Ripken autograph experience completely different is that Ripken has an assistant whose job is to snap pictures of each and every person who wants one with Ripken. The way it worked was Ripken would sign 10-15 autographs and those people would then stand in a mini-line while Ripken got up and stood for pictures with each person.
The coolest part of the whole experience was that Ripken never hurried anyone and never made anyone feel like he was anything other than a guy who could play baseball. Even better was the fact that not a single person complained about waiting in a long line while Ripken chatted up fans and posed for pictures. You don't often see that kind of collective patience in a crowded setting.
After I posed with Ripken, he shook my hand and said, "don't forget to learn a little about Bob Bonner and Jeff Schneider." I promised him I would.
After going back to my hotel room that night, I did a little research and learned that Bonner played for parts of four seasons with the Orioles before retiring in 1984.
After he hung up his spikes, he became a Christian missionary to Zambia - a job he did for 26 years. He later started an organization called International African Missions to recruit missionaries to serve in African nations.
I wasn't able to find out a lot about Schneider other than his time in The Bigs was short and that after leaving the game, he went to being a self-proclaimed "normal guy."
