6 Degrees Of Mookie - The Cal Ripken Jr Connection

It's time once again for "6 Degrees Of Mookie" - the fabulous game show blog post where I take a random card in my collection and attempt to connect it to current Red Sox superstar Mookie Betts! Let's take a look at today's contestant!

Random TCDB Card: 

1988 Topps UK Minis #61 Cal Ripken Jr.

1988 Topps UK Minis #61 Cal Ripken Jr.

Another Hall of Fame player! The fact that the random card comes from the 1988 Topps UK Minis set makes this interesting however. This small set only has 3 Baltimore Orioles in it! My only options are to pair the Iron Man with either fellow Hall of Famer Eddie Murray or Larry Sheets. I was tempted to go with Sheets honestly, as he was born in Staunton VA where I currently work. I know Murray will get me where I want to go quicker though.

Teammates in the 1988 Topps UK Minis set
#61 Cal Ripken Jr.	#53 Eddie Murray

Just like last time, I get to show 2 Hall of Fame players side-by-side! Baltimore was lucky to have both these guys together for most of the eighties! 1988 would be Murray's last year as an Oriole.

Teammates in the 1996 Score set
#79 Eddie Murray	#305 Manny Ramirez

"Steady Eddie" took his big bat to Cleveland in his later years, where he was able to watch another young slugger come up and establish himself.

Teammates in the 2009 Topps - Ring Of Honor insert set
#RH20 Manny Ramirez	#RH98 David Ortiz

Ramirez and Ortiz played just under 6 full seasons together, forming one of the most potent back-to-back hitting tandems in history. There's no shortage of sets these two appeared in together, so I decided to honor their World Series legacy by using this insert set.

Teammates in the 2016 Topps Update set
#US254 David Ortiz (AS)	#US201 Mookie Betts (AS)

"Big Papi" made his last All-Star appearance in 2016, which ironically just so happened to be Mookie's first! He's made every one since then, and I hope he's still in Boston for next year!

Degrees of Mookie: 4