Cal Ripken Jr. doesn’t do half measures.

The MLB great had a head start in the game thanks to his father Cal Sr. — a former player, scout, coach, and manager.

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The elder Ripken spent 36 years in various roles for the Baltimore Orioles but his biggest contribution to the game was schooling his son.

Junior spent his childhood following his father around the country and didn’t stray far from that path after being drafted by the Orioles in the second round of the 1978 MLB draft.

Within five years he had won the World Series — his only triumph.

Ripken was named an All-Star every year from 1983 to 2001, earned two AL MVP awards, two Gold Gloves and was an eight-time Silver Slugger winner.

Like his dad, he was an Oriole for life and at 6ft 4 in, the Hall of Famer led the way for taller shortstops, as well as hitting 431 home runs.

The Iron Man’s most impressive accomplishment — one that will likely never be beaten — was topping fellow Hall of Famer Lou Gehrig’s streak of 2,130 consecutive games played.

Ripken ultimately made it to 2,632 before voluntarily giving up his run by sitting out of the final home game of the 1998 season.

“I have a great deal of respect for him and what he’s accomplished,” Derik Jeter said at the time. “That’s a record that’s not ever going to be broken. I mean, I’m tired right now and I haven’t played in that many games.”

Ripken was back the next day after struggling to enjoy his rest.

“So that’s what a day off feels like,” he joked after the game. “Now that I know what it feels like to take a day off, I don’t want to watch many games. I tried to do what others do. But I was antsy. I was fidgety.”

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The baseball icons are both in the Orioles Hall of Fame[/caption]

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Junior was enshrined into the Hall of Fame in 2007[/caption]

With an estimated $70 million in career earnings, he could have put his feet up for the rest of his life.

But true to form, Ripken has kept himself extremely busy since his retirement in 2001.

He is the chair of Ripken Baseball and has worked alongside the MLB and the State Department to grow the game domestically and all over the world.

After his father passed away in in 1999, the family set up the Cal Ripken, Sr. Foundation in his memory and it has helped over 10 million children by providing sports facilities to underserved communities.

“The meaning you get from giving back is different from the meaning you get from winning the World Series or winning most valuable player,” Ripken Jr. said. “All that feels good too, but there’s a special feeling you get when you’re directing your resources and your time toward helping other people.”

Ripken has authored numerous bestselling books and played a role in one of the biggest video games of all time, Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim.

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Ripken Sr. was a huge influence on Cal[/caption]

He sat on the board of ZeniMax — the parent company of publisher Bethesda.

Microsoft purchased ZeniMax for $7.5 billion in 2020.

Ripken sat down with CBS Sports in March as the 2025 MLB season got underway and insisted his iconic streak is far from secure.

“If I can do it, somebody else can,” he said. 

“I think the biggest challenge through that streak, or the desire to play every day, is when you are rebuilding.

“When you are playing and things aren’t going well and you’re losing, it changes the whole approach. The easiest time to play is when you’re winning. You just go out and do whatever to help your team win that particular day.”

Speaking 30 years on it is not the record itself he is most proud of but how he contributed to the team while setting it.

“In 2,129, I hit a home run. In 2,130, I hit a home run. In 2,131, I hit a home run and we won all three of those games,” he added.

“It’s about showing up, doing well, team playing well, not so much you’re celebrating the record.”

Words every would-be sports star should be aware of.