Hardware Heroes of the 1990s: Cal Ripken, Jr.'s 1991 MVP

 

-Matthew McConkey

When I was a kid, one of the living icons of the game at that time was Cal Ripken, Jr. Growing up in the 1980s and 90s, I didn't get to see him play unless the Baltimore Orioles were playing on NBC on the Game of the Week, ESPN, or it was an All-Star game. That was it. There were also pictures of him on the covers of baseball magazines that I'd occasionally see. There were, of course, baseball cards of the man. It was how I tracked his success over the years. 

When I collected baseball cards, I'd pull one of his from a pack and was ecstatic because I knew how good he was, even though I didn't get to see him play often. Sometimes, I'd make card trades for Ripken, Jr. to add more of his cards to my ever-growing baseball card collection. 

During the 1990s, Ripken, Jr. was a giant among men in baseball. He was the best shortstop in the game, both in the field and at the plate. His consecutive games played streak was going strong in the 1990s. All of us kids back then wondered if he was ever going to break it, the immortal Lou Gehrig's 2,130. He would in 1995. 

Ripken, Jr. had arguably the best season of his career that '91 season. When it came time for the MVP voting, he received 15 first-place votes to runner-up Cecil Fielder's 9. It would be his final MVP trophy.

Ripken's 1991 Season: At a Glance

In 1991, Cal won his second MVP. He had 34 home runs and 114 RBIs, both of which were career highs. 

Cal also hit .323, his career high, when he registered 600+ plate appearances

His OPS was .940, a career high when he registered 600+ plate appearances

Posted the second-most hits of his career with 210

He also won a Gold Glove and a Silver Slugger that year and didn't miss a game, of course

Cal was a road warrior, hitting .358 away with 18 HRs and 62 RBIs with a 1.027 OPS

He crushed lefties with a .348 BA and a 1.088 OPS

In his first 80 games, Ripken collected 18 HRs and 54 RBIs with a .348 BA and a 1.001 OPS

He hit .371 in June, the highest of any month during the 1991 season

During a 1-1 count, Ripken was deadly, hitting .453 with a 1.188 OPS

With RISP, Cal tallied 70 of his 114 RBIs with a .315 BA. 

Two outs w/RISP, Ripken hit .290 and had 20 RBIs and 2 HRs

He destroyed the Rangers in 12 games, hitting .409 with 2 HRs and 13 RBIs, 1.140 OPS while hitting .476 in 6 games at Texas' Arlington Stadium. 

Cal Ripken, Jr.'s Stats

https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/r/ripkeca01.shtml