Cal Ripken Jr. Reveals What “Pissed” Him Off During His Last All-Star Game
It was the first time since 2001 that the MLB All-Star Game was played in Seattle on Tuesday. In that instance, baseball greats Tony Gwynn and Cal Ripken Jr. bid farewell to the crowd as they made their final appearances at the “Midsummer Classic.”
Cal Ripken Jr. Reveals What “Pissed” Him Off During Last All-Star Game
Even if it seemed to have backfired, Alex Rodriguez’s noble gesture for Cal Ripken Jr. during the 2001 MLB All-Star Game is still remembered today.
On Tuesday’s 2003 All-Star Game pregame program on FOX, Rodriguez made mention of the time he persuaded Cal Ripken to go from third base to shortstop for one final time.
Alex Rodriguez sliding over to play third base so Cal Ripken Jr. could play SS in his final All-Star Game is still one of baseball's dopest moments.pic.twitter.com/UHSu1rj44B
— Mike Salvatore (@MikeSalvatore10) July 11, 2023
“Derek [Jeter] and I looked up, admiring, [Ripken’s] the reason I was able to play short, being so tall…I just wanted, as a fan, to have you one more time in your position,” Rodriguez said to Ripken.
Even though Ripken ultimately switched to shortstop, he said that he was hesitant to leave third base.
Cal Ripken Jr reveals he was peeved at Alex Rodriguez during last All-Star Game for pushing him to shortstop https://t.co/u6iWHEYMeq
— Fox News (@FoxNews) July 12, 2023
“Now that you brought it back up, I was kind of pissed at you,” Ripken Jr. said to A-Rod.
“I was like looking at it, I hadn’t [played shortstop] in a while. I got this big ‘ol glove on my hand that they called humongous, I go, ‘how am I going to go back over there, turn a double play?'”
The one, the only… Cal Ripken Jr. pic.twitter.com/H8Z4HkUely
— Alex Rodriguez (@AROD) July 12, 2023
As Rodriguez shoved him over, Ripken said he was being recorded at the moment and had to “choose my words very carefully.”
In 1997, Ripken Jr. was forced to switch to third base due to age, while Rodriguez, then a 25-year-old star with the Rangers in the peak of his career, started at shortstop for the American League.
A-Rod and Derek Jeter recall the moment that Rodriguez moved to 3rd base in Cal Ripken Jr.'s final All-Star Game in 2001.
How did Cal think about that at the time?
"Well, now that you brought it back up, I was kinda p****ed at you. To be honest with you." 😂😂 pic.twitter.com/Fg6vzci2X7
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) July 11, 2023
The 2001 season marked the end of the career of the two-time MVP. He played in 19 All-Star games and from 1983, when he received his first MVP award, until 2001, he did so in a string of seasons. With 2,216 games, he also surpassed Lou Gehrig’s record for the longest stretch of consecutive games played.
Cal Ripken Jr. of the Baltimore Orioles shakes hands with catcher Ivan Rodriguez of the Texas Rangers after Ripken hit a first inning home run during the MLB All-Star game July 10, 2001, at Safeco Field in Seattle. Ripken was M.V.P. in his final appearance in the All-Star Game. pic.twitter.com/DeYXbaiFBH
— Fatboy FadeAway Sports (@FatboyFadeaway) July 10, 2023
They subsequently resolved their dispute, and on Tuesday they all enjoyed a nice chuckle over it. However, it continues to be one of the oddest moments in All-Star history.
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