A historian stumbled upon newspaper columns written by Lou Gehrig in 1927. They reveal a side of the former Yankees player that few saw. OnlyAGameNPR
Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig look at the ball which flew over the left field wall of Dunn field in Cleveland Ohio for the Babe's 500th home run of his baseball career. It was July 4, 1939, soon after the 36-year-old was diagnosed with ALS. On that day, 62,000 fans watched as Gehrig walked to home plate at Yankee Stadium, scratched his head, and said goodbye to the game of baseball.
"So it was an opportunity for ball fans to learn something new about this new phenomenal kid who was only 24 in 1927. And he could explain how he rose to such prominence in his own words. It was a rags-to-riches story that Christy Walsh thought the country would love to hear," Gaff says.In one of his first columns, Gehrig wrote about his relationship with his mother, Christina,"who he refers to as his 'best pal,'"Gaff says.
I’ll never forget the night I went home and told my mother that I was going to quit college and go into baseball. She broke down and cried when I told her. She insisted that I should stay on in school. "You think you’re a ballplayer," he said one day at the Stadium."All you can do is hit that ball. If you’re a ballplayer, I’m the King of Siam." And he said it in a nasty tone of voice.
That season, Ruth and Gehrig were locked for a time in a tight battle for the home run title. Stories circulated about alleged acrimony between the two. But Gehrig publicly professed his admiration for the Babe. He shared the following story on Sep. 21, 1927. "That’s all right," Babe replied, taking the lad in his arms."We’ll get that fixed." And back he ploughed through the mob, the youngster held in his arms.
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