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Position: First base
Team: Yankees
Years Played: 1923-1939 (first two years mostly in Yankee minor leagues)
Batted/Threw: Left
Lifetime BA: .340
Lifetime HR: 494
Holds record for Most Lifetime Grand Slams (23)
Hit 4 homeruns in a single game, one of very few players to do so
Batted in over 100 runs per season for 13 seasons
Played for 2,130 consecutive games
Won Triple Crown in 1934
AL MVP: 1927, 1936 (from sportswriters)
Nicknames include "Iron Horse," "Buster," "Biscuit Pants," and "Columbia Lou" (for more names, visit
His Nicknames)
He was born into poverty and never-ceasing self-consciousness
on June 19, 1903 in Yorkville, NY, to German Lutheran-immigrant parents. Though not a natural athlete, he was an exceptionally
dedicated worker and strived hard in sports as well as academics. He attended the prestigious Columbia University through
luck of situation and a thunder-bolt bat, withdrawing before his senior year to play for the Yankees. For the majority of
his baseball career with the Yankees, he stood at 6 feet tall and weighed 200 pounds.
A southpaw first basemen, he made his professional debut
in Yankee Stadium on June 15, 1923. He would play for 2,130 consecutive games, a record, from 1925 to 1939, playing along
side the likes of Babe Ruth and Joe DiMaggio. Gehrig is also the record-holder for most lifetime grand slams (23); he was
just as aggressive as he was dedicated-- his first stolen base was home plate.
He married Eleanor Twitchell in 1933, much to his mothers
chagrin. In 1938 his strength dwindled suddenly and a year later he was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS
or, as its widely known today, Lou Gehrigs Disease), a rare and incurable terminal illness. His retirement day was one of
the most memorable events in baseball history, providing his now-famous and much-quoted farewell address and the history marker
of the first time a team has ever retired a players number.
On June 2, 1941, he died from ALS in his home in Riverdale,
New York. The rules of admission into the Hall of Fame were waived to allow him to be inducted without the usual waiting period.
Intrigued? Choose a link below or from the left-hand column:
His Career His Personal Life His Living Legacy Library o' Gehrig
Questions and Answers
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