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A genuine hero's moment Ripken rides off into All-Star sunset in glorious style
Updated: Wednesday July 11, 2001 8:20 AM
SEATTLE -- Sometimes, things just work out. Sometimes, the sun shines, a nice breeze blows, the good guys win and the hero gets the girl. Or, in this case, a home run. That's how things have been for Cal Ripken Jr. for a lot of his career. He's worked hard. Played a lot of games. Won his share. Won a couple of MVP awards. A World Series. And, while he was busy doing all that, he also saved the national pastime from devouring itself. Tuesday at the 72nd All-Star Game, in the twilight of a beautiful Seattle afternoon, the Baltimore Orioles' third baseman did his hero thing again in one of those gag-me Hollywood endings that Ripken manages to pull off so well. He could have gone out quietly in his last All-Star Game. If you've watched him hit at all this season, you probably expected it. But Ripken, remember, doesn't like to go out. At all. So, Tuesday, with a swing of his twitchy bat, Ripken made what would have been just another meticulously planned and completely forgettable All-Star Game into a true midsummer classic. A keeper. "That," said Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Randy Johnson, "is the kind of magic that Cal brings to the field." The All-Star Game, almost by definition, is a manufactured event. It's an exhibition. Wars have had less planning than these things. The CIA leaves more stones unturned. This one, especially, turned into a big production. Once Ripken announced that he was retiring at the end of the season, this became more than just another All-Star Game. It became "Cal Ripken's Last All-Star Game." Everybody on their marks. Lights, camera, action. But Ripken, once again, sliced through all that. In the bottom of the third, with the shadows lengthening across Safeco Field and Los Angeles' Chan Ho Park on the mound, Ripken dug into the batter's box. The expected cheers rose from the crowd of more than 47,000 and climbed enough that Ripken had to step out of the box to acknowledge the fans. And then he stepped back in, swung at the first pitch he saw -- a really fat one, right down the middle -- and lined it just over the left-field wall for a home run. No way. Everybody in the stadium seemed to say it. No freaking way. But it was. An improbable, maybe impossible, home run. In Cal Ripken's Last All-Star Game. "I actually felt like I was fast for the first time in my career," he said afterward. "I felt like I was flying around the bases." The moment didn't match the night he broke Lou Gehrig's record or the night he tied it or many of the many other magic moments he has made. But, boy, it was eerily close. "It was almost too perfect," said Anaheim third baseman Troy Glaus. "He just always seems to do it." Three innings later, with the crowd still buzzing, Ripken came out of the game in one of those painfully painted Major League Baseball moments. A lectern appeared along the third-base line, Glaus came out to take Ripken's spot. The game was stopped, the commissioner climbed from his seat and Ripken and Tony Gwynn were given the Commissioner's Historical Achievement Award. After a quick thank you to the crowd, Ripken ran back to the dugout, stomping with both feet on the plate on his way. The game was played out while Ripken sat with his son, Ryan, on the bench. The AL won. Ripken got his MVP. The moment passed. And that was that. Ripken will finish his final season now, though no one expects much from him or the Orioles at this point. Considering his record in those situations, that might be a mistake. Still, when people remember Ripken's last All-Star Game, it won't be for the awards or the ceremonies or the well-meant gestures. It will be for a chilling piece of baseball. A genuine hero's moment. "It's been special," Ripken said shortly after his swing. Yes, Cal. Yes, it has. John Donovan is a senior writer for CNNSI.com. The opinions expressed here are solely those of the writer. Comments? To e-mail Donovan, click here.
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