Ripken says he'll retire at end of season

Associated Press

Cal Ripken, who shattered a baseball record once considered unbreakable, will retire after this season.

"It's something that Cal has been working through and agonizing over," said Ripken spokesman John Maroon last night. "There's been a lot of thought, but the timing just felt right."

Ripken, 40, revealed his decision earlier in the day in an interview with The Washington Post.

"It's inevitable that you can't play forever," the third baseman told The Post. "I've maximized my window of opportunity as well as anyone. (Baseball) has given me a lot of joy and happiness and satisfaction. I'm proud of what I've been able to do."

Ripken broke Lou Gehrig's record of 2,130 consecutive games played on Sept. 6, 1995, and extended the streak to 2,632 straight games before voluntarily ending the streak on Sept. 20, 1998.

Ripken is hitting .210 this year with four homers and 25 RBIs. He is one of seven players in major league history with 3,000 hits (3,107) and 400 home runs (421).

"I'm ready to do other things," Ripken told the Post. "I'm ready to be home and be available to my kids and family. . . . I'm sure I'll miss certain parts of (playing). But when you put your heart and soul into it at the level I have every single day, you can minimize some of your regrets."