Cal Ripken, Jr.

Calvin Edwin Ripken Jr. was born August 24, 1960, in Harve de Grace, Maryland. Baseball was in his blood--his dad, Cal Sr., was a minor league player in the Baltimore Oriole farm system. During Ripken's childhood his father spent 20 years as a minor league coach and manager before finally making the big leagues as a coach for the Orioles. His dad's job helped Cal Jr. choose a career. "From the time Cal Jr. was a little tyke," his mom, Vi, told Sports Illustrated, "all he ever wanted to be was a ballplayer." Ripken says his mom was even more important than his dad in encouraging him to play sports. "Everybody talks about how much of an influence my dad must have been on me, but the truth is I really didn't see that much of him at all," Ripken told Sports Illustrated. "When I look back on [my childhood], I really have to tip my hat to my mom. She took me to all of my games, congratulated me if I did well, consoled me [made me feel better] if I didn't." Since his dad didn't get to see many of Ripken's Little League games, it was his mother who taught her son how to hit.

Cal Ripken, Jr. holds many records in professional baseball, but it is his breaking of Lou Gehrig's record of 2,131 consecutive games played that especially endears him to his admirers, who call him the "Iron Man" of baseball. The perseverance, endurance and everyday work ethic that Ripken has exhibited throughout his 17 seasons with the Baltimore Orioles has made him one of the most popular professional athletes in all of sports.