Iron Horse begins his journey

NEW YORK, NEW
YORK - On this date in 1925 twenty-one
year old Henry Louis Gehrig
pinched hit for New York Yankee shortstop Paul Wanninger. Lou Gehrig would play in every single game
for the next 14 years. He would surpass Everett Scott's consecutive game
record of 1,307 and set his own of 2,130 games played.

The often repeated story is that Gehrig's streak began when New York Yankee
first baseman Wally Pipp asked for a day off because of a headache. Another
story is Yankee manager Miller Huggins didn't start Pipp and several
other regulars that day to shake up a slumping lineup. Either story may be
true. Gehrig did start at first in place of Pipp, but it was the second day of
his streak, June 2nd.

Interestingly, the guy Gehrig pinch hit for on June 1st
to start his streak, Paul Wanninger, several years earlier had replaced former
consecutive game record holder Everett Scott in the Yankee lineup.

Gehrig's consecutive game streak ended sadly in 1939 when he was forced out of
the lineup by a rare disease called amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS),
more commonly known as Lou Gehrig's disease. His seemingly unbreakable record
would stand for 56 years. It was broken by Cal Ripken of the Baltimore
Orioles in 1995.

CONTRIBUTING SOURCES:
ESPN on Gehrig
Wally Pipp
June 1, 1925 box score

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