Truly Deserving

Kudos to the newest inductees to the Baseball Hall of Fame – Tony Gwynn and Cal Ripken, Jr. In recent years, I have become convinced that the membership in the hall has become too large, due to the induction of many who were, while certainly good players in their day, don’t really measure up to clearly being among the absolute greatest to play the game in its 100+ years.

This year, however, both selections were right on the money.

Tony Gwynn, while never providing the nation with the spectacle of a run at .400 like Rod Carew or George Brett, nevertheless had no equal during his playing days as a dominant hitter. The absence of a World Series championship from his resume – he made it to the series twice with the Padres – does nothing to diminish his status as a legend, and a nice guy, to those who follow the game.

Cal Ripken will always be known primarily for “the streak” which saw him play in over 2,600 consecutive games, obliterating a record set by the legendary Lou Gehrig that many thought would never be broken, especially in an era of prima donna players that are comfortable taking the day off for a runny nose, while collecting multi-million dollar salaries. The breaking of this record alone is certainly enough to set Ripken apart from most of the rest who have played in the majors. But the fact is that, even without that item on his resume, his career statistics would have been enough to number him among the greats of the diamond. The only real question surrounding his selection is, why did he only get 98.53 percent of the vote?

Both of these men demonstrated a level of grace and class in addition to their athletic ability and work ethic that made it easy for anyone to take satisfaction in their victories and accomplishments – including this latest one. Many congratulations to Tony and Cal – two of the true giants of baseball history. And may history grant us a few more like them before it’s all over.