Lou Gehrig

The Iron Horse

via Wikipedia: Lou Gehrig · see source

Henry Louis Gehrig ( GAIR-ig; born Heinrich Ludwig Gehrig; June 19, 1903 – June 2, 1941) 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. 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.

Quick Facts

Position: First baseman
Bats: Left
Born: 19 June 1903
Birthplace: Manhattan, New York, U.S.
Died: 2 June 1941
Place of death: The Bronx, New York, U.S.
Debut league: MLB
Debut date: June 15

Lore & Background

A native of New York City and a student at Columbia University, Gehrig signed with the Yankees on April 29, 1923. He set several major-league records during his career, including the most career grand slams (23; since broken by Alex Rodriguez) and most consecutive games played (2,130), a record that stood for 56 years and was considered unbreakable until Cal Ripken Jr. surpassed it in 1995. Gehrig's consecutive game streak ended on May 2, 1939, when he voluntarily took himself out of the lineup, stunning both players and fans, after his performance in the field had become hampered by an undiagnosed ailment; it was subsequently confirmed to be amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), an incurable neuromuscular illness that since then is sometimes referred to as "Lou Gehrig's disease" in the United States.

Gehrig never played again and retired in 1939 at age 36. Approximately two months later, the ball club held a Lou Gehrig Appreciation Day on July 4, 1939, at the close of which he delivered his speech declaring himself the "luckiest man on the face of the earth" at Yankee Stadium. Two years later, Gehrig died of complications from ALS. In 1969, a committee selected Gehrig as the first baseman on MLB's All-Time Team, and in 1999, he was named to the MLB All-Century Team, chosen by fans.

A monument in Gehrig's honor, originally dedicated by the Yankees on July 4, 1941, prominently features in Monument Park at the new Yankee Stadium. The Lou Gehrig Memorial Award is given annually to the MLB player who best exhibits Gehrig's integrity and character.

Reader's Guide

Gehrig was born June 19, 1903, at 1994 Second Avenue in the East Harlem neighborhood of New York City. He was the second of four children of German immigrants Anna Christina Foch and Heinrich Wilhelm Gehrig. Gehrig's father was a sheet-metal worker by trade who was frequently unemployed due to alcoholism and epilepsy, and his mother, a maid, was the main breadwinner and disciplinarian in their family. Gehrig was the only one of the four siblings to live past childhood.

He spoke German during his childhood, not learning English until the age of five. Gehrig attended PS 132 in Washington Heights, then went to Commerce High School, graduating in 1921. He first garnered national attention for his baseball ability while playing in a game at Cubs Park (now Wrigley Field) in Chicago on June 26, 1920, when he hit a grand slam completely out of the major league park. Gehrig studied engineering at Columbia University for two years, leaving to pursue professional baseball.

He signed a contract with the Yankees on April 30, 1923. Gehrig made his major-league debut as a pinch hitter at age 19 on June 15, 1923. On June 2, 1925, he replaced Wally Pipp at first base and went on to appear in every game the Yankees played until April 30, 1939. In 1927, Gehrig put together one of the greatest seasons by any batter in history, hitting .373, with 218 hits, 47 home runs, a then-record 175 RBIs, a .474 on-base percentage and a .765 slugging percentage.