Newest Hall members are true class acts

There are those who deserve recognition for their efforts and abilities as professional athletes, then there are those who elevate their play above all others and should have their own special achievement club.

Over the weekend two such men were honored by their peers and Major League Baseball when they were inducted into the MLB Hall of Fame.

Early in their careers, Cal Ripken Jr. and Tony Gwynn showed they had all the talent in the world, but I’m not sure too many people saw Cooperstown in their futures.

Every now and then an athlete will come along, representing their sport with pride and dignity and showcasing themselves as true gentlemen of the game. No two athletes have done a better job of epitomizing all that is good about baseball as Gywnn and Ripken.

In a era of self-proclaimed greatness by so many of today’s professional athletes, I only wonder if baseball or any other sport will ever see two more modest athletes.

What these two guys meant to the game of baseball can partially be explained by the huge crowd on hand to witness their induction into the Hall of Fame. Generally, around 50,000 fans attend the ceremony, but the crowd was estimated to be at 75,000 for Gwynn and Ripken.

Both men had remarkable careers, by anyone’s standards.

Gwynn had to make a choice after graduating from Dan Diego State: Baseball or basketball? He was drafted by the Padres in the third round of the MLB draft and by the San Diego Clippers in the 10th round of the NBA draft.

One of the most pure hitters of the game, Gwynn finished his career with a .338 batting average. I had several chances to see Gwynn play during his 20-year career, and I have never seen a smoother, more effortless flick of the bat than Gwynn had.

Today’s audience is motivated to attend games by the power hitters. ‘Going yard’ is a fan favorite, but the true baseball fan understands the art of hitting and just how difficult it is to maintain a batting average over .300. As good a hitter as Ripken was, his average was only .276.

Ripken was drafted in the 2nd round of the 1978 draft by the Orioles and was the ‘Iron Man’ of baseball. The Rookie of the Year in 1982, he racked up two American League MVP honors and was the 2001 All-star Game’s MVP as well.

As a testimony to their greatness and their likability, Ripken and Gwynn spent their entire careers with one team. That doesn’t happen much any more, and even during their careers it was very rare to see anyone stick it out with one team for 20 years or more.

Today’s professional ball players are so wrapped up about the money, they move from team to team. Whoever can write the biggest check gets the best players. Most of these players are at their peak for only a short time, maybe three to four years. But the problem with athletes is in their minds, they’re great forever.

Maybe some day another player with Ripken’s or Gwynn’s abilities will grace the diamond. But in an age where the game is more about the money than one’s self satisfaction of playing the game with your heart and soul, it could be a long time before we see anyone play it with the consistency as these two did.

There were men before them who set examples on how to play the game. Now these two have set their own examples for future Hall of Famers.