Thousands of baseball fans and former players pack Yankees Stadium as they prepare to pay tribute to a Yankee legend. Perhaps the fans and players do not know it at the time, but they are about to witness history. In a short amount of time, they will hear one of the most memorable speeches in the history of all sports.
The aroma of freshly cut grass fill the summer air as murmurs sweep through the anxious crowd. Fans are drenched in sweat as the ferocious sun beat down on their faces on this scorching hot, summer day.
Finally, an applause roars throughout the stadium as countless baseball fans watch a baseball legend appear at the edge of the field. Everyone in the stadium is standing on their feet as he calmly walks toward the middle of
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The legend stands looking out into the crowd to emotional to even utter a word. Trying hard to hold back the tears, he calmly steps towards the microphone as he gazes out to the packed stadium for one last time.
It was July 4th, 1939. It was Lou Gehrig Appreciation Day at Yankee Stadium in New York. This was Lou Gehrig’s last day in a Yankee uniform.
After a difficult childhood and years of playing for The New York Yankees during the late 1920s and the early 1930s, breaking numerous records including the number of consecutive games played giving him the nickname of the “Iron Horse,” Lou Gehrig’s humble and modest personality changed the complexion of baseball and sports around the world despite the fact he was diagnosed the deadly disease of ALS at a relatively early age.
Growing up New York City: Early Life of Lou Gehrig
As a young child growing up in New York City in the early 1910s, Lou Gehrig had a difficult lifestyle as the son of two German immigrants. Gehrig’s mother worked two jobs and maintained the household while his father had substandard health and struggled to stay sober when Gehrig was growing
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Even after he died, he remained an icon in baseball and the whole sports industry. Many young adolescents and even grown adults look at athletes as role models or heroes. Even though some athletes make questionable decisions, people still look up or even follow in the footsteps of the athlete because of their prowess at the sport he/she plays professionally. However, Anthony Smith wrote “For people who turn to athletes as examples of perseverance or strength, I don’t think there is a better example than Gehrig.” With his difficult childhood growing up with a drunk and a mother who worked multiple jobs and his diagnosis with ALS at an early age, Anthony Smith believes that Gehrig is one of the finest role models in the athletic world. As a devoted baseball fan and player, sixteen year-old Liam Smith wrote “I love Lou Gehrig even though I can’t say the same for the team he played for.” In addition, Smith continued “He was a true fighter, one who never gave up and never complained. The true definition of a