Cal Ripken, Jr.; Pall Ball!

48 pages. Illustrations. Career Highlights. This is a Puffin Easy-to-Read Level 3. Calvin Edwin Ripken Jr. (born August 24, 1960), nicknamed "The Iron Man",[1] is an American former baseball shortstop and third baseman who played 21 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Baltimore Orioles (1981-2001). One of his position's most offensively productive players, Ripken compiled 3,184 hits, 431 home runs, and 1,695 runs batted in during his career, and he won two Gold Glove Awards for his defense. He was a 19-time All-Star and was twice named American League (AL) Most Valuable Player (MVP). Ripken holds the record for consecutive games played, 2,632, surpassing Lou Gehrig's streak of 2,130 that had stood for 56 years and that many deemed unbreakable. In 2007, he was elected into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility, and currently has the fourth highest voting percentage of all time (98.53%). What is it like to be a major league ball player? Cal Ripken, Jr. plays third base for the Baltimore Orioles. In this autobiography for beginning readers, he talks about growing up in a baseball family, and about his love for the game. He reveals his primary goal? to play well and play every day. And he tells how, in 1995, he broke the record for playing the most games in a row. Here is Cal's story, with over 30 action-packed photographs and illustrations. Short sentences, important visual clues, and a lively text encourage young sports fans to become excited about reading.…