Infield: Shortstop Cal Ripken Jr. (1981-2001) is overrated and underrated at the same time, which happens sometimes to living legends. He played in 2.632 consecutive games, breaking Lou Gehrig’s “unbreakable” Iron Man streak by 500 games. Perhaps you already knew that. Over the course of that streak, Ripken emerged in some views as a superhuman hero who was incapable of doing anything wrong – in the wake of the disastrous 1994 work stoppage, Ripken’s larger-than-life image was considered to be one of the factors that helped draw fans back to the game. But then there was the backlash. A lot of people got tired of how The Streak dominated baseball talk, and they painted Ripken as a selfish player who put his own accomplishments ahead of his team’s success. To those who saw him as a hero, Ripken was the best player in baseball; to those who saw him as selfish, he was an average player lifted to a higher status because of a record that was impressive but irrelevant to the goal of winning baseball games. So what’s the truth? The truth is, he was one of the five best shortstops in history. He won two MVP awards, and even when he wasn’t playing at that level, he was a good (but not great) hitter. Defensively, he was far better than people realized. At 6-foot-4 and 200 pounds, he was bigger than traditional shortstops, so he didn’t fit the mold of the little wiry guy diving all over the place (think Ozzie Smith) – but he had a powerful and accurate arm, which allowed him to play deeper than other shortstops and therefore cover more ground, even without leaping and diving. He finished his career with 3,184 hits, including 603 doubles and 431 home runs. He drove in 1,695 runs and scored 1,647. A shortstop who can hit like that while playing good defense and being the top ambassador for his team and his sport – that’s a very good player. Yes, it is true that The Streak itself was overrated, and if the popular image of Saint Cal was overdone. But Ripken was a hell of a ballplayer. Remember, he came to the majors as a third baseman (folks thought Earl Weaver was nuts in 1982 when he decided to move the big guy to shortstop). He might move back to that position on this C.R. team if third baseman Charlie Reilly (1889-97) doesn’t get the job done. (That would be “Princeton Charlie” Reilly, not to be confused with Charles Nelson Reilly, the goofy game-show celebrity from the 1970s.) At age 22, Reilly joined the Columbus team in the American Association for a weeklong trial at the end of the season, and he went 11-for-23 with three home runs and nine stolen bases. As you might imagine, that was enough to win a job for the following season. Well, after that he was a very ordinary player – mediocre or sub-mediocre for the rest of his career. In fact, after hitting three home runs in his first week, he went on to play in more than 600 games and his career high in home runs was … uh … four. According to some sources, he has the distinction of being the first batter ever used as a pinch-hitter. Second baseman Claude Ritchey (1897-1909), a 5-foot-6 firebrand who was affectionately known as “Little All Right,” is best known as Honus Wagner’s double play partner. In fact, they played together with several minor-league teams before their long tenure together with the Pirates, and they were roommates and close friends. Ritchey was a very ordinary hitter, but a teriffic glove man. First baseman Claude Rossman (1904-09) was a decent line drive hitter for Cleveland and Detroit in his mid-20s. He was out of the majors before he turned 30, but he hit .300-plus a few more times in the minors.
Outfield: Right fielder Carl Reynolds (1927-39) was a .300 hitter who put up a good number of extra-base hits. His best season was 1930, when he batted .359 with 104 RBI and 103 runs for the White Sox – a very good season, but not exactly eye-popping in the A.L. in the 1930s. He is perhaps best known for his participation in an on-field brawl that began when he bowled over Yankees catcher Bill Dickey, prompting Dickey to break Reynolds' jaw. Center fielder Cody Ross (2003- ) is a .260-.270 hitter – some doubles and home runs, lousy strike zone judgment – who hit three home runs in the 2010 NLCS for the eventual World Series champion Giants. Left fielder Chief Roseman (1882-90) was a solid hitter with gap power. He bounced around the American Association for the better part of a decade.
Catcher: Carlos “Chooch” Ruiz (2006- ) is a very ordinary catcher who hit very well for the Phillies in the 2008 NLCS and World Series.
Rotation: Charlie Root (1923-41) is known to generations of fans as the guy who gave up Babe Ruth’s “called shot” in the 1932 World Series. But let’s move past that, OK? After all, Root was a pretty fair pitcher – the winningest pitcher in Chicago Cubs history. His career record was 201-160, and in 1927 he went 26-15 and led the NL in victories. It is ironic that Root is best known for giving up a home run. In general he was very good about keeping the ball in the park – playing in an era of high offense, he only gave up a home run every 18 innings – but things were very different in the postseason. In 22 2/3 World Series innings, Root gave up eight home runs (including Ruth’s “called shot” and the home run that Gehrig hit on the very next pitch). Charlie Robertson (1919-28) served in World War I, pitched one game for the 1919 Black Sox, spent the next two years in the minors before rejoining the cleansed White Sox in 1922 – and promptly threw a perfect game in his third major-league start. His career sort of went downhill from there. He pitched for bad teams, and he didn’t pitch all that well, so he finished with a 49-80 record. Clayton Richard (2008- ) went 14-9 with the Padres in 2010 and is still in his prime. He has yet to establish himself as an especially good pitcher, but he's not bad either. We'll see where he goes from here. Chuck Rainey (1979-84) was an itinerant swing man who is perhaps best remembered for the time when he and Mark Clear were warming up for Boston, prompting the broadcaster to say “It’s Clear and Rainey in the Red Sox bullpen.” (Rimshot.) Rainey was 43-35 in his career. Chick Robitaille (1904-05) pitched briefly for Pittsburgh and actually pitched very well – 12-8, career ERA of 2.56. He was a fine pitcher in the minors and did well when he pitched in the bigs as well.
Bullpen: Closer Claude Raymond (1959-71) was a French-Canadian from Quebec who hung around long enough to pitch for the expansion Montreal Expos. He was popular enough with fans that he spent many years in the broadcast booth for the Expos’ French radio affiliate. He had a 46-53 record with 83 saves in his career. Chris Reitsma (2001-07) was born in the U.S. (Minneapolis) but raised in Canada (Calgary), and thus has dual citizenship and pitched for the Canadian Olympic team. He was 32-46 with 37 career saves. Chris Ray (2005- ), who has no known affiliations with Canada, pitched well as a 23-year-old rookie in 2005 and then became the Orioles’ closer and saved 33 games in 2006. Things went downhill from there, and he is trying to reestablish himself in his late 20s. Carlos Reyes (1994-2003) was a generally dependable middle reliever for five teams. Lefty Clay Rapada (2007- ) has had a very fine minor-league career and is 4-0 in various trials in the majors. He gets bonus points from being a local boy from Portsmouth, Virginia (just as Chris Ray gets bonus points for playing at the College of William and Mary). Chris Resop (2005- ) is in mid career and has a great arm, but he need to work on his consistency. Curt Raydon (1958) pitched for the Pirates at age 24, going 8-4 with a 3.62 ERA. One of those victories was a 4-hit shutout of the Giants, who had the best offense in the National League that year. For whatever reason, Raydon went back to the minors in 1959, pitched for several more seasons, but never made it back to the majors. Oddly enough, in his one season in Pittsburgh he went 1-for-38 as a hitter – but drew six walks.
Bench: Craig Reynolds (1975-89) was a shortstop who could possibly replace Charlie Reilly in the starting lineup at shortstop and bump Ripken back to third base. He batted .256 for his career, with no power or speed and not many walks, but he was a good glove at shortstop and a very good bunter, and he did manage to play in a couple of all-star games. Infielder Cookie Rojas (1962-77) was a similar model – a .263 hitter with no power or speed and not many walks, but a good bunter. From 1971-74, in his mid-30s, he averaged .276 with 5 homers and 9 steals and played average defense at second base – but he played in four straight all-star games and received votes on MVP ballots in two of those years. Go figure. Colby Rasmus (2009- ) is an extremely talented young outfielder who could very easily move into the starting lineup on this team – but we’ll wait to see just a bit more before that happens. Infielder Connie Ryan (1942-54) was a similar type player to Craig Reynolds and Cookie Rojas. He was once ejected from a game for going up to the plate wearing a raincoat to protest the umpires’ decision to continue a game during a downpour. (You have to admit, that’s pretty funny.) Backup catacher Charlie Reipschlager (1883-87) has a name that is very fun to say in a fast, sharp tone of voice. Try it. Reipschlager! Reipschlager! See?
Manager: Cal Ripken Sr. was a longtime coach and minor-league with the Orioles and played a role in shaping many great players who came up through that farm system, from Jim Palmer to Eddie Murray (and of course, his sons Cal Jr. and Billy). His term as manager of the Orioles was brief, unpleasant and unsuccessful, but he was a highly respected institution within the organization. He was a chain-smoking taskmaster who believed in discipline and was fond of saying that “practice doesn’t make perfect – perfect practice makes perfect.”
Outfield: Right fielder Carl Reynolds (1927-39) was a .300 hitter who put up a good number of extra-base hits. His best season was 1930, when he batted .359 with 104 RBI and 103 runs for the White Sox – a very good season, but not exactly eye-popping in the A.L. in the 1930s. He is perhaps best known for his participation in an on-field brawl that began when he bowled over Yankees catcher Bill Dickey, prompting Dickey to break Reynolds' jaw. Center fielder Cody Ross (2003- ) is a .260-.270 hitter – some doubles and home runs, lousy strike zone judgment – who hit three home runs in the 2010 NLCS for the eventual World Series champion Giants. Left fielder Chief Roseman (1882-90) was a solid hitter with gap power. He bounced around the American Association for the better part of a decade.
Catcher: Carlos “Chooch” Ruiz (2006- ) is a very ordinary catcher who hit very well for the Phillies in the 2008 NLCS and World Series.
Rotation: Charlie Root (1923-41) is known to generations of fans as the guy who gave up Babe Ruth’s “called shot” in the 1932 World Series. But let’s move past that, OK? After all, Root was a pretty fair pitcher – the winningest pitcher in Chicago Cubs history. His career record was 201-160, and in 1927 he went 26-15 and led the NL in victories. It is ironic that Root is best known for giving up a home run. In general he was very good about keeping the ball in the park – playing in an era of high offense, he only gave up a home run every 18 innings – but things were very different in the postseason. In 22 2/3 World Series innings, Root gave up eight home runs (including Ruth’s “called shot” and the home run that Gehrig hit on the very next pitch). Charlie Robertson (1919-28) served in World War I, pitched one game for the 1919 Black Sox, spent the next two years in the minors before rejoining the cleansed White Sox in 1922 – and promptly threw a perfect game in his third major-league start. His career sort of went downhill from there. He pitched for bad teams, and he didn’t pitch all that well, so he finished with a 49-80 record. Clayton Richard (2008- ) went 14-9 with the Padres in 2010 and is still in his prime. He has yet to establish himself as an especially good pitcher, but he's not bad either. We'll see where he goes from here. Chuck Rainey (1979-84) was an itinerant swing man who is perhaps best remembered for the time when he and Mark Clear were warming up for Boston, prompting the broadcaster to say “It’s Clear and Rainey in the Red Sox bullpen.” (Rimshot.) Rainey was 43-35 in his career. Chick Robitaille (1904-05) pitched briefly for Pittsburgh and actually pitched very well – 12-8, career ERA of 2.56. He was a fine pitcher in the minors and did well when he pitched in the bigs as well.
Bullpen: Closer Claude Raymond (1959-71) was a French-Canadian from Quebec who hung around long enough to pitch for the expansion Montreal Expos. He was popular enough with fans that he spent many years in the broadcast booth for the Expos’ French radio affiliate. He had a 46-53 record with 83 saves in his career. Chris Reitsma (2001-07) was born in the U.S. (Minneapolis) but raised in Canada (Calgary), and thus has dual citizenship and pitched for the Canadian Olympic team. He was 32-46 with 37 career saves. Chris Ray (2005- ), who has no known affiliations with Canada, pitched well as a 23-year-old rookie in 2005 and then became the Orioles’ closer and saved 33 games in 2006. Things went downhill from there, and he is trying to reestablish himself in his late 20s. Carlos Reyes (1994-2003) was a generally dependable middle reliever for five teams. Lefty Clay Rapada (2007- ) has had a very fine minor-league career and is 4-0 in various trials in the majors. He gets bonus points from being a local boy from Portsmouth, Virginia (just as Chris Ray gets bonus points for playing at the College of William and Mary). Chris Resop (2005- ) is in mid career and has a great arm, but he need to work on his consistency. Curt Raydon (1958) pitched for the Pirates at age 24, going 8-4 with a 3.62 ERA. One of those victories was a 4-hit shutout of the Giants, who had the best offense in the National League that year. For whatever reason, Raydon went back to the minors in 1959, pitched for several more seasons, but never made it back to the majors. Oddly enough, in his one season in Pittsburgh he went 1-for-38 as a hitter – but drew six walks.
Bench: Craig Reynolds (1975-89) was a shortstop who could possibly replace Charlie Reilly in the starting lineup at shortstop and bump Ripken back to third base. He batted .256 for his career, with no power or speed and not many walks, but he was a good glove at shortstop and a very good bunter, and he did manage to play in a couple of all-star games. Infielder Cookie Rojas (1962-77) was a similar model – a .263 hitter with no power or speed and not many walks, but a good bunter. From 1971-74, in his mid-30s, he averaged .276 with 5 homers and 9 steals and played average defense at second base – but he played in four straight all-star games and received votes on MVP ballots in two of those years. Go figure. Colby Rasmus (2009- ) is an extremely talented young outfielder who could very easily move into the starting lineup on this team – but we’ll wait to see just a bit more before that happens. Infielder Connie Ryan (1942-54) was a similar type player to Craig Reynolds and Cookie Rojas. He was once ejected from a game for going up to the plate wearing a raincoat to protest the umpires’ decision to continue a game during a downpour. (You have to admit, that’s pretty funny.) Backup catacher Charlie Reipschlager (1883-87) has a name that is very fun to say in a fast, sharp tone of voice. Try it. Reipschlager! Reipschlager! See?
Manager: Cal Ripken Sr. was a longtime coach and minor-league with the Orioles and played a role in shaping many great players who came up through that farm system, from Jim Palmer to Eddie Murray (and of course, his sons Cal Jr. and Billy). His term as manager of the Orioles was brief, unpleasant and unsuccessful, but he was a highly respected institution within the organization. He was a chain-smoking taskmaster who believed in discipline and was fond of saying that “practice doesn’t make perfect – perfect practice makes perfect.”
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