Still chasing a dream
Ryan Ripken believes he can play in majors, so camp invitation’s a big step
Spring training opener PIRATES@ORIOLES Sunday, 1:05 p.m.
At first, the games of pepper were just a way for father and son to warm up before their workouts each morning.
But before long, it was clear to Ryan Ripken that his father, Hall of Famer Cal Ripken Jr., just liked to have a bat in his hands again.
The sharp ground balls off his shins aside, the younger Ripken believes those daily sessions in the run-up to his inclusion in the Orioles’ spring training picture were the perfect preparation for another challenge as he inches closer to his major-league dream.
“It’s probably the most time my dad and I had been able to work with each other consecutively in my lifetime,” said Ryan Ripken, who is in Sarasota, Florida, participating in major-league workouts, which began Monday. “Even just bigger than baseball, it was great to be able to hang with my dad.
“To train with baseball and work with him each day was a blessing.”
It was during one of those workouts that Ripken got — and missed — the call earlier this month to inform him that he’d be invited to Sarasota along with the big leaguers this week.
Ripken is listed as a camp reserve and will be based primarily at the team’s minor-league complex at Twin Lakes Park, though the team has said such players will be backand-forth to the major-league complex when full-squad workouts began Monday. He presumably will appear in some Grapefruit League games as well.
For Ripken, it’s a chance to continue pursuing a dream that in many ways was bequeathed to him at birth. He’s chosen to exhaust every avenue he can to achieve it.
“I don’t want to look back and have the what-ifs,” Ripken said. “I want to be able to help the major league team and play in the major leagues one day. I don’t want to look back and cut myself short because of weird times, and having self-talk and doubting yourself. I’m just happy to be back.”
Ripken, 27, has worn that famous name on his back at several stops on his baseball journey. A Gilman
A clearer picture will emerge by March 9, when the window closes. Even then, there will be some uncertainty about who’s going where. Under the NFL’s collective bargaining agreement, franchise-tagged players receive a one-year tender worth either 120% of their previous year’s salary or an amount determined by leading player salaries and the salary cap, whichever is greater.
“Exclusive” franchise players, who cannot negotiate with other teams, must be offered a one-year tender worth either 120% of their 2020 salary or no less than the average of the top five salaries at the player’s position.
The more common “nonexclusive” franchise players receive either 120% of their 2020 salary or an amount tied to previous salary figures and the still-undetermined 2021 salary cap. (The number is calculated by adding the franchise tag costs from the five previous seasons at the position and dividing it by the sum of the salary caps in that period. That cap percentage is then multiplied by the salary cap for the upcoming league year.)
Nonexclusive players can negotiate with other teams, but if they sign an offer sheet from another team, the original team can match the terms. If the offer is not matched, the original team will receive two first-round draft picks as compensation from the signing team.
Tagged players can’t force their way into free agency by refusing a tag, but they can be traded, provided they’ve signed their tender. Exclusive and nonexclusive franchise players have until July 15 to reach a long-term deal; they’re otherwise prohibited from signing an extension until after the season.
Here’s a look at seven notable pending free agents and franchise tag candidates, including the Ravens’ pair of pass rushers. The players are ordered by the projected value of their tender, as determined by Pro Football Focus salary cap calculations.