Gehrig Bids Farewell. After American baseball player Lou Gehrig announced he was leaving baseball, fans and teammates honored him with Lou Gehrig Appreciation Day at Yankee Stadium in New York City. In an emotional speech, Gehrig, who had just learned he had a rare neuromuscular disease, told the crowd, "I may have had a tough break, but I have an awful lot to live for." . Gehrig Bids Farewell The 61,808 people who filled Yankee Stadium on the Fourth of July, 1939, heard one of the most moving speeches ever made by an athlete. "Today, I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth," said the first baseman whose legacy burns as brightly as that of any player ever to wear a baseball uniform. Thirty-six-year-old Henry Louis Gehrig said goodbye to baseball that summer day in New York City. He said goodbye to a game he played for 14 years with as much dignity and grace as anyone before or since. The man who appeared in 2130 consecutive games and won seven pennants with the most celebrated baseball dynasty of them all was dying. Few people could even pronounce the name of the disease that Gehrig suffered from--amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. (It is an affliction that is now most commonly called "Lou Gehrig's Disease," after its most famous victim.) But everyone knew that it had stolen the vitality of the man once described as "Gibraltar in cleats." Few people outside the Yankees organization knew how sick Gehrig really was. Just three years earlier, in 1936, Gehrig had earned his second most valuable player (MVP) award after leading the American League in home runs, runs batted in (RBIs), and runs scored. Although experts later speculated that the advancing disease made playing painful for Gehrig, the "Iron Horse" had never let on that he was suffering. By 1938, however, Gehrig could no longer hide his agony. He batted, ran, and fielded with increasing difficulty. Pitches he would normally send into the cheap bleacher seats were dropping for outs. His batting average dipped below .300 for the first time in 13 years. Yankee manager Joe McCarthy was asked repeatedly if he planned to take Gehrig out of the lineup. "That's Lou's decision," was his stock answer. Thin and visibly weakened, Gehrig returned for the 1939 season. During the eighth game teammates complimented him on a play he made in the field. That play, however, consisted of Gehrig trotting to first base to receive a throw from pitcher Johnny Murphy. His teammates' growing sympathy drew Gehrig closer to that most painful of decisions. On June 21, two days after Gehrig's 36th birthday, the Mayo Clinic announced that he had a rare neuromuscular disease that would likely claim his life. A New York writer named Paul Gallico promptly floated the idea of "Lou Gehrig Appreciation Day" at Yankee Stadium on July 4. The Yankees played a double-header that day against the Washington Senators. In between games, a 40-minute ceremony featured speeches by McCarthy, New York City mayor Fiorello LaGuardia, and others. Also on hand were members of the league-champion Yankees of 1927, including longtime Gehrig teammate Babe Ruth. As Gehrig listened to speeches and received gifts, he stood shakily and fought back tears. In his hands he twisted his cap into a braid. Yankees president Ed Barrow helped steady Gehrig, physically and emotionally, with an arm around the shoulder. McCarthy, sobbing openly, said into the microphone, "Lou, what else can I say except that it was a sad day in the life of everybody when you told me you were quitting as a ball player because you felt yourself a hindrance to the team. My God, man, you were never that." "We want Lou! We want Lou!" the crowd chanted. The emcee looked over to Gehrig. Gehrig slowly shook his head from side to side. Workers began removing the sound equipment. Gehrig headed for the dugout but then turned around. McCarthy said something to him, which the New York Times lip-read as, "Come on, Lou, just rap out another." Gehrig held up his hand to get the crowd's attention, swallowed hard, and forced a smile. Fiddling with his cap and scratching at the turf with his cleats, he spoke deliberately to the hushed audience. His baritone voice echoed eerily throughout the stadium. "Fans, for the past two weeks you have been reading about the 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 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? "Sure, I'm lucky. When the New York Giants, a team you would give your right arm to beat, and vice versa, send you a gift--that's something. When everybody down to the groundskeepers and those boys in white coats remember you with trophies--that's something. So I close in saying that I may have had a tough break, but I have an awful lot to live for." Before dozens of photographers, Ruth embraced Gehrig and made a crack that made his ailing friend smile the way his legions of fans had remembered. The image is one of the most enduring in all of baseball. As Gehrig and his admirers walked off the field, the crowd chanted, "We love you!" Gehrig nearly collapsed in the locker room but was able to return to the dugout to captain the Yankees to victory--even if only ceremonially--one final time. Microsoft ® Encarta ® 2009. © 1993-2008 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.
