Lou Gehrig (d. 1941)

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Biography

Henry Louis Gehrig was an American professional baseball first baseman who played 17 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees. Gehrig was renowned for his prowess as a hitter and for his durability, which earned him the nickname "the Iron Horse", and he is regarded as one of the greatest baseball players of all time. Gehrig was an All-Star seven consecutive times, a Triple Crown winner once, an American League (AL) Most Valuable Player twice and a member of six World Series champion teams. He had a career .340 batting average, .632 slugging average, and a .447 on-base average. He hit 493 home runs and had 1,995 runs batted in (RBIs). He is also one of 21 players to hit four home runs in a single game. In 1939, Gehrig was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame and was the first MLB player to have his uniform number retired by a team when his number 4 was retired by the Yankees.

In Their Own Words (3)

Fans, for the past two weeks you have been reading about a bad break I got. Yet today, I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth. I have been in ballparks for 17 years, and I have never received anything but kindness and encouragement from you fans. Look at these grand men. Which of you wouldn't consider it the highlight of his career just to associate with them for even one day?

Speech made on Lou Gehrig Appreciation Day at Yankee at Yankee Stadium (July 4, 1939) , 1939

So I close in saying that I might have been given a bad break, but I've got an awful lot to live for.

Speech made on Lou Gehrig Appreciation Day at Yankee at Yankee Stadium (July 4, 1939) , 1939

In the beginning I used to make one terrible play a game. Then I got so I'd make one a week and finally I'd pull a bad one about once a month. Now, I'm trying to keep it down to one a season.

Timeline

The story of Lou Gehrig, told in moments.

1925 Event

Pinch-hits for Pee-Wee Wanninger and starts a consecutive games streak that will last 2,130 games. Fourteen straight seasons without missing a day. He plays through broken fingers, back spasms, and fevers. Nobody forces him. He just shows up.

What kept you showing up for 2,130 consecutive games? Was playing through broken fingers and fevers courage or stubbornness? Did the streak feel like a prison or a point of pride?

1934 Life

Wins the Triple Crown, batting .363 with 49 home runs and 166 RBIs. He plays alongside Babe Ruth. Ruth gets the headlines. Gehrig gets the numbers. He doesn't seem to mind.

Did you mind that Ruth got the headlines while you got the numbers? Was winning the Triple Crown enough without the fame? What did playing alongside Babe Ruth teach you about ego?

1939 Event

Gives his farewell speech at Yankee Stadium. "Today I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth." He's been diagnosed with ALS. The disease will carry his name forever. He can barely stand at the microphone. 61,808 people listen.

Did you really feel like the luckiest man on earth that day? What was it like barely standing at the microphone in front of 61,808 people? Is your speech the most honest words ever spoken in a stadium?

1941 Death

Dies at his home in Riverdale, the Bronx. He was 37. Exactly 16 years to the day after his streak began.

Was dying exactly 16 years after the streak began coincidence or poetry? What would you tell someone diagnosed with your disease today? Did 37 years feel like enough?

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