THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, July 3, 1996 TAG: 9607030653
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Column
SOURCE: Bob Molinaro
LENGTH: 68 lines
Leadership on the baseball field and in the clubhouse is as difficult to identify as it is to measure.
So is the absence of leadership.
Perhaps Baltimore Orioles owner Peter Angelos is having a problem telling one from the other.
How else do you explain his recent outburst, when he blamed Cal Ripken, of all people, for an unwillingness to lead his underachieving team.
``The problem here,'' Angelos said Friday, ``is aggressive, inspired leadership on the field and in the clubhouse. And there's no one more qualified than Cal Ripken to provide that.''
Ripken, he added, ``may not want to because of his reserved personality. He needs to step out of it and lead and he can dispense with the other observations.''
Ripken not a leader?
That's a strange charge to level at the man who saved baseball.
Apparently, for Ripken watchers, it's always something. This time last year, he was accused of placing The Streak before the team. Now he's not a leader.
Well, if a leader must be a holler guy, Angelos is right. Ripken is no leader. He shows little, if any, emotion on the field or in the clubhouse. On the bench, he mostly keeps company with his own thoughts.
Angelos' public rebuke will not change Ripken's basic nature, any more than a suspension will turn Albert Belle into a Boy Scout.
Ripken is low-key, modest and deeply dedicated to the game, qualities that go into making him the kind of player he is, but something less than a ball of fire in the clubhouse.
Still, there is more than one way to inspire teammates. Hasn't Angelos ever heard of leading by example?
``Some people think leadership is standing on the dugout and waving a towel,'' Ripken said in his own defense. ``I personally don't think that.''
You can understand Angelos' frustrations. The Yankees, with a banged-up pitching staff, are pulling away from the star-studded Orioles, who have all the talent in the world, but not as much heart.
The Yankees find ways to scratch out victories. The Orioles cannot regularly beat anyone but the American League bottom feeders.
Would a more animated Ripken raise the Orioles' pulse? And for how long?
Baseball, by its very nature, is not a game of adrenaline. You can't get fired up to play every day. Waving towels and smashing bats create good video, but do sophomoric antics make a difference on the field?
Not as much of a difference as a reliable pitching staff.
One wonders, though, if Ripken's reticence is related to his history as an Oriole. In his 15 years in Baltimore, he's seen free agents flame out and sure-fire farm hands fizzle. He's played for a lot of bad teams.
For most of those years, all Ripken could depend on was his own relentless professionalism. If he gradually grew aloof from the team, who could blame him?
At 35, Ripken is who he is, not a bad thing at all for baseball or the Orioles.
If Angelos thinks his shortstop's clubhouse demeanor is a problem, the owner needs to look again.
``To be more visible,'' Ripken said, ``I'd have to understand what that means.''
Ripken's contributions - off the field, as well as on - are all too visible for anyone who shares an appreciation for his quiet style of inspiration.
Maybe what the Orioles need are not more leaders, but better followers. ILLUSTRATION: Color photo
Could O's shortstop Cal Ripken, Jr. not be a leader? by CNB