Who was Lou Gehrig?
A: Henry Louis Gehrig was an American professional baseball player.
He was a first baseman who played how many seasons in
Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees?
A: 17.
Gehrig was renowned for his prowess as a hitter and for
his what?
A: Durability.
What was his nickname?
A: The Iron Horse.
He was an All-Star how many consecutive times?
A: Seven.
He was a Triple Crown winner once, an American League
(AL) Most Valuable Player twice, and a member of what?
A: Six World Series champion teams.
What was his career batting average?
A: .340, .632 slugging average, and a .447 on base average.
He hit how many home runs?
A: 493.
He had how many runs batted in (RBI)?
A: 1,995.
He still has the highest ratio of what?
A: Runs scored plus runs batted in per 100 plate appearances (35.08) and per
100 games (156.7) among Hall of Fame players.
In 1939, he was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame
and was the first MLB player to what?
A: Have his uniform number (4) retired by a team.
A native of New York City and a student where?
A: At Columbia University.
When did Gehrig sign with the Yankees?
A: On April 29, 1923.
He set several major-league records during his career,
including the most career grand slams (23) and what?
A: The most consecutive games played (2,130).
It was a record that stood for how long?
A: 56 years.
It was long considered what?
A: Unbreakable until surpassed by Cal Ripken Jr., in 1995.
Gehrig's consecutive game streak ended on May 2, 1939,
when he did what?
A: Voluntarily took himself out of the lineup, hampered by an undiagnosed
ailment.
Subsequently it was confirmed to be amyotrophic lateral
sclerosis, a what?
A: An incurable neuromuscular illness.
It is now commonly referred to in North America as
what?
A: "Lou Gehrig's disease".
The disease forced him to retire at what age?
A: 36 and claimed his life two years later.
The pathos of his farewell from baseball was capped off
by what?
A: His iconic 1939 "Luckiest Man on the Face of the Earth" speech at Yankee
Stadium
In 1969, the Baseball Writers' Association of America
voted Gehrig what?
A: The greatest first baseman of all time.
He was the leading vote-getter on the MLB All-Century
Team chosen by fans in what year?
A: 1999.
A monument in Gehrig's honor, originally dedicated by
the Yankees in 1941, currently resides where?
A: In Monument Park at Yankee Stadium.
The Lou Gehrig Memorial Award is given annually to the
MLB player who does what?
A: Best exhibits Gehrig's integrity and character.
