Violet R. “Vi” Ripken, the matriarch of a baseball dynasty and a revered member of the Aberdeen community recalled for her philanthropy, died of a heart ailment Friday at the Johns Hopkins Hospital. She was a day short of her 83rd birthday.
She was the widow of former Orioles manager Cal Ripken Sr. and mother of Baseball Hall of Famer Cal Ripken Jr. and former Oriole Bill Ripken. She had two other children, a daughter, Ellen Leigh “Elly” Ripken, who was her caregiver, and another son, Frederick “Fred” Ripken.
In a statement, the family said: “We want to thank everyone for the tremendous outpouring of affection towards our mom and our family during this difficult time.