Cal Ripken Jr had an absolutely amazing year in 1982. The Iron Man was named the American League's Rookie of the Year, helped the Baltimore Orioles to the World Championship, and began a streak of consecutive games that would surpass Lou Gehrig's all-time MLB consecutive game record. Presented is a game used Cal Ripken Baltimore Orioles' batting helmet that dates from his rookie era. It is not certain, but there is a strong chance that this helmet was used by Cal Ripken in the early part of his consecutive game streak. Ripken played his entire Major League career with the Baltimore Orioles (1981-2001), mostly as a shortstop - although he began and ended his career as a third baseman. He amassed 3,184 hits, with 431 home runs and a batting average of .276. He was a 19-time All-Star, won two American league MVP Awards, and was a 2-time Gold Glove winner. He was most acclaimed for his 2,632 consecutive game hitting streak, surpassing the previous consecutive game streak of 2,130 set by Lou Gehrig. The helmet has a sticker on the interior forehead area shows the size as 7 1/2, and that the batting helmet was produced by American Baseball Cap of Media, Pa. The black, orange and white helmet has a stylized image of the Baltimore Orioles logo on the front. On the lower back of the helmet is a tag showing three generic baseball players. On the brim of the helmet is Ripken's "8" in white. The interior of the helmet also has a manufacturer's disclaimer regrading liabilities for injuries. The helmet exhibits great wear. The interior ear flap cushion has a small tear and some tiny stains. The cushioned padding on the interior shows sweat stains. The rear part of the inner padding apparently was added to replace a back portion of the hairline padding and this added padding is not glued to the helmet and may be removed. The helmet has many abrasions, nicks and places where small areas of paint have been chipped off by use. Cal Ripken Jr. was the real deal, playing the majority of his career without missing even one game in a season, and this Cal Ripken great game used helmet is also the real deal, and a tremendous addition to any sports assemblage.