Finally, there was the herniated disk he played through from the middle of July through Sept. 1 of the 1997 season. That time, Ripken said there was a point where he was lying on an examining table, and the doctors were saying, "it was a great run, it had to end at some point." But the Orioles were trying to hold off the Yankees in the American League East race, and Ripken — pain and all — hit close to .300 during the six-week stretch.

“I asked if I could do anything permanently to damage it, and they said, ‘no, you can’t’,’’ Ripken said. “That was the most excruciating pain. I didn’t have a lot of stability in my left leg. There was pain shooting through my whole leg.

“At the time, I didn’t think the streak was that big of a deal. When you’re going through it, you think it’s not that hard. But when you look back at it, there were so many things that could have happened to stop me. It’s pretty amazing I was able to go 16 years without missing a game.’’

And to think, it almost never happened at all. When Ripken came out of Aberdeen (Md.) High, some teams saw him as a pitcher, others as a hitter. But it was the Orioles who drafted the son of one of their top minor-league managers and instructors. And even within the Orioles’ organization, there was some division as to where he should play.

But Ripken’s direction was determined by Earl Weaver, who had watched him as early as age 16, when Cal Sr. would work his son during the early-afternoon hours at Memorial Stadium.

“(Weaver) saw me swing the bat and thought I should get a chance as a position player,’’ Ripken said. “In my mind, I was thinking pitchers only get a chance to play once every five days. I wanted to play every day.’’

And boy, did he take that seriously. And so we were graced by a player who redefined the shortstop position, making it a welcomed spot for big men and power hitters, and was credited with nothing less than helping resuscitate a struggling sport in the wake of a debilitating strike that canceled the 1994 World Series. It is a designation he’ll always cherish.

“I’m proud that I could play at least a role in helping the game after so much damage had been done,’’ he said.

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