Lou Gehrig

by Kevin Viola

Traces the life of the New York Yankee legend, Lou Gehrig and describes his baseball accomplishments.

106 pages, Library Binding

First published January 1, 2004

Reviews

[Josiah · Rating 2 out of 5]

He's one of the great sluggers baseball has ever known. One of the great pure hitters, clutch performers, and human beings. Lou Gehrig might be the most emotionally memorable person to ever set foot on a baseball diamond, a national hero whose life was cut short at age thirty-seven by amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). The "Iron Horse" rarely took centerstage during the Yankees' many World Series runs in the 1920s and '30s, but was often the best player on a squad of stars such as Babe Ruth, Bill Dickey, Bob Meusel, Tony Lazzeri, and Joe DiMaggio. Born June 19, 1903 to German-American parents in a poor section of New York City, Henry Louis Gehrig was the only one of his siblings to survive infancy. Perhaps this accounts for the unusually strong attachment his mother, Christina, had to him. As a kid, Lou was a dynamo at every sport he put his hand to, but baseball in particular. Graduating from grade school in 1917, he expected to join the workforce, but Christina had other ideas. She wanted him to attend high school and become an important, well-paid engineer.

The High School of Commerce? For a kid from a poor family? Lou's mother worked hard for the money to send him there, and he resolved to validate her sacrifice by excelling at academics. But the siren song of sports was too loud to ignore, and when Lou earned an offer to play semipro baseball in his spare time, he jumped at the opportunity to contribute financially to his family. He also played on the Commerce baseball team, which at one point traveled to Chicago for a big game against Lane Technical High School at Wrigley Field. Lou showed a flash of future brilliance by hitting a grand slam home run in the late innings. He thrived on and off the field at Commerce, but a college education seemed unlikely until a scout from Columbia University offered Lou a full scholarship as a baseball and football player. Christina stubbornly held out hope her son would someday be an engineer, but Lou was headed for a different future.

A tryout with the New York Giants, Lou's favorite childhood team, ended badly, but Giants Manager John McGraw would come to regret his decision to reject Lou. After sorting out an eligibility misunderstanding at Columbia, Lou dazzled the collegiate baseball world in 1923. His big break came when Paul Krichell, a scout for the New York Yankees, saw Lou play and asked him to sign a pro contract. Earning thousands of dollars to play baseball seemed like a fantasy, but Lou wanted to take care of his parents as they aged, so he inked the deal and prepared to don Yankee pinstripes. Would he deliver on his potential?

Lou arrived on a team crowded with established talent. Not only did Babe Ruth prowl the outfield, but Wally Pipp was as good a first baseman as any in baseball. Manager Miller Huggins knew that Lou would someday take Pipp's position, but a few years of seasoning with the minor league Hartford Senators was necessary first. By 1925 Lou had mostly usurped Wally Pipp as the Yankees' first baseman, and while the team had a tumultuous year as Babe Ruth and Miller Huggins clashed over off-field issues, Lou started feeling confident on the diamond. In 1926 Lou and Babe led the Yankees to the American League (AL) pennant. They lost to the St. Louis Cardinals in the World Series, but Lou made a decent showing, a portent of things to come.

1927. This was the year. Predicting success for the Yankees wasn't hard, but no one knew this would be arguably the best team in sports history. Lou and Babe led a relentless offensive attack, piling up outrageous stats and tearing through the league like tissue paper. Babe broke his own single-season record by belting sixty home runs, and Lou had an astonishing forty-seven on his way to winning the Most Valuable Player (MVP) award. The Yankees rolled into October as prohibitive favorites to defeat the Pittsburgh Pirates in the World Series. It was hardly a contest; Lou and Babe romped to a sweep, the first ever by an AL team. The pair of superstar sluggers capitalized on their fame by launching an offseason barnstorming tour in the Midwestern U.S., but they were ready to defend their World Series title at the start of 1928. Lou and Babe continued their unprecedented offensive onslaught even as injuries slowed the Yankees a bit. Teammates frequently went down for weeks or even months with injury, but Lou played through every strained muscle and broken bone he suffered without complaint. He was building an impressive number of consecutive games played, a counting stat that would grow to define his career.

"The Babe is one fellow, and I'm another and I could never be exactly like him. I don't try, I just go on as I am in my own right."

—Lou, quoted on P. 49 of Lou Gehrig

Nothing could compare to being a Yankee alongside Lou and Babe in their prime. In the 1928 World Series the Yankees avenged their loss in '26 by sweeping the St. Louis Cardinals, Lou and Babe contributing monster offensive numbers. 1929 saw the team falter in the AL standings and manager Miller Huggins suddenly died of a rare disease, but Lou put up solid numbers, and did so again in 1930. Before the 1931 season the Yankees hired Joe McCarthy as their new manager, and Lou had a terrific year, clubbing forty-six home runs and one hundred eighty-four runs batted in (RBI). The Yankees finished behind the splendid Philadelphia Athletics in the pennant race, but Lou's personal fortunes took an upward turn when he began dating Eleanor Twitchell. They agreed to marry, though persuading Lou's mother, Christina, to accept Eleanor would prove a long process. 1932 was a banner year on the field for Lou; in one game, he set the modern MLB record by hitting four home runs. The Yankees edged out the Athletics to capture the AL pennant, and in the World Series they steamrolled the Chicago Cubs for a sweep as Lou posted an awesome .529 batting average. Things were looking up for Yankees Nation.

In 1933 Lou broke Everett Scott's record for consecutive games played, and the streak would extend much further before it ended. Amid quarrels between Christina and Eleanor, Lou and his bride-to-be finally married, which ended a lot of the family drama so Lou could concentrate on baseball. With Babe entering his twilight years, Lou had his magnum opus season in 1934, leading the major leagues in home runs (forty-nine), RBI (one hundred sixty-five), and batting average (.363) to win the rare Triple Crown. At age thirty-one, the Iron Horse seemed to be getting better, emerging from Babe's shadow as the team's top player. A quiet man, not given to self-aggrandizement, Lou struggled his entire career to receive the accolades he deserved. Lou and Babe's friendship was on shaky ground, but they did an all-star baseball tour in Japan following the '34 season. In 1935 Babe retired, but another charismatic star would soon join the Yankees. Young Joe DiMaggio was brought in from the Pacific Coast League, and formed a dynamic duo with Lou similar to what he had with Babe. Lou, a less flashy personality than "Joltin' Joe", receded willingly into the background while maintaining his quality of play. He posted a marvelous stat line in 1936, swatting forty-nine home runs en route to his second MVP award. Joe couldn't keep pace with that. The Yankees mowed down the vaunted New York Giants in the World Series, culminating in a memorable home run by Lou off Giants pitching ace Carl Hubbell. Sharing the team with Joe was an adjustment, but if ever a superstar was prepared to defer the spotlight, it was Lou.

"I had (Lou) for over eight years and he never gave me a moment's trouble. I guess you might say he was kind of my favorite."

—Yankees Manager Joe McCarthy, quoted on page 88 of Lou Gehrig

1937 saw Lou sign on to star in a Western movie called Rawhide, but he didn't lose focus on baseball. The Yankees won the pennant and diced up the New York Giants in the World Series, a second consecutive sweep. Fans enjoyed seeing Lou on the silver screen when Rawhide premiered in March 1938, but that season it became obvious something was wrong. Lou would turn thirty-five in June, but age alone couldn't account for the rapid deterioration of his play. His consecutive games streak passed 2,000, and Lou pieced together a decent season by the standards of most players, but nothing he tried could get him back to being the "Larrupin' Lou" of old. By spring training of 1939, Lou could hardly run, and he wobbled and fell over at times for no apparent reason. Joe McCarthy loyally stuck with him as his starting first baseman, but in the month of May Lou removed himself from the lineup, ending his streak at 2,130 consecutive games. He remained with the team for the rest of '39 as they won the World Series with Joe DiMaggio leading the way. That summer, doctors diagnosed Lou's problems as ALS, but Eleanor convinced them to withhold his prognosis from him. Only she knew that Lou would be gone inside of three years. Totally confined to bed, his body not much more than a formless blob, Lou Gehrig died June 2, 1941, a magnificent athlete reduced to nothing by a dread disease. But ALS couldn't reduce the size of Lou's legacy in baseball.

"I would not have traded two minutes of the joy and the grief with that man for two decades of anything with another."

—Eleanor Gehrig, quoted on P. 93 of Lou Gehrig

One of the finest sports movies ever made, 1942's The Pride of the Yankees, is responsible for some of the stirring images of Lou Gehrig that remain in the collective consciousness. But even without the movie, Lou would be a hallowed figure, a good man who faced premature death bravely. Who could forget July 4, 1939, Lou Gehrig Appreciation Day at Yankee Stadium, when he stepped to a microphone in front of tens of thousands of tearful fans and assured them that he considered himself "the luckiest man on the face of the earth." He went on to say, "I may have had a tough break...but I have an awful lot to live for." Those who consider Lou Gehrig their all-time favorite baseball player have no shortage of reasons to feel that way. I, personally, admire him as much as anyone in the game's history.

Kevin Viola's Lou Gehrig is a competent junior biography, but I've read better books about the man. His life story is full of emotion, especially the climactic scene at Lou Gehrig Appreciation day, but this book doesn't get the most out of it. Jonathan Eig's Luckiest Man: The Life and Death of Lou Gehrig, a biography for adults first published in 2005, does a much better job with the emotional tenor of Lou Gehrig's story. Kevin Viola wrote a junior biography of Joe DiMaggio that I recommend more than this one; it better connects us to the meaning and deep feeling of the Yankee Clipper's life. Nevertheless, I'd rate Lou Gehrig two and a half stars, and if you want to learn about a true titan of baseball lore, pick up this book. You'll find Lou to be as human as he was heroic.

[Carter Ver · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lou Gehrig

“Lou Gehrig” is a biography written by Kevin Viola. Throughout the story you learn some of the hardships Lou faces as he turns from a kid that comes from a poor family to a superstar in the MLB. Eventually leading to his farewell to the sport, retirement of his jersey, and his unpredictable death. Lou Gehrig is a great book because of the suspense the author creates early on and how well he develops Lou’s character.

The author of Lou Gehrig creates great suspense early in the book that keeps you guessing about future events. On the very first page of the book the author reveals that Lou is retiring from baseball because he is slowly dying from a deadly disease called ALS. But surprisingly, not everyone in the stadium knew he was dying. “It was Lou Gehrig Appreciation Day. Everyone in the stadium knew that between the two games, a ceremony would mark the retirement of the veteran first baseman, but not every-one knew the awful truth. The truth was that Lou Gehrig—who was only thirty-six years old and who had been at the top of his game just two years ago—was dying”(Viola 1). When the author states this, readers start to question what may have caused this. Thus leading to suspense as the author slowly reveals the reason for his death. Later on in the book Lou also faces great adversity while in college. He was trying out for a team when he made an error and the coach told him to get out of here and quit wasting my time. But, one of the other coaches didn’t want to give up on Lou. So he told him to play with a Class A Eastern League team, which is similar to a minor league team. The coach even assured Lou that there was no rule against making money as a college athlete. “It turned out that playing for money was against collegiate rules. Lou had learned the hard way that he shouldn’t trust everyone. His entire collegiate career was suddenly in jeopardy”(Viola 24). Now that Lou’s collegiate career is in jeopardy, readers start to wonder how he may overcome such an obstacle. Especially if he couldn’t play baseball for a period of time. The way the author creates suspense makes the reader eager to find out what happens next.

The author develops Lou’s character really well, from when he was a little boy to a star in the MLB. On June 19, 1903 Lou was born in the Yorkville section of New York, where many impoverished German and Hungarian Immigrants lived. When you think of someone who becomes an MLB star, you usually don’t think of someone who comes from a poor family and gets picked on. “Lou was shy by nature and, like any kid, hated being teased. Unfortunately, he was an easy target. Because money was scarce, he often had to wear hand-me-down clothes that never fit his huge frame just right. He was bulky, awkward, and shabbily dressed—not a good combination for a kid who just wants to fit in”(Viola 9). Even with all the slander Lou was receiving from fellow classmates, he did not let this affect him in the long run. He kept practicing and becoming better every day. Lou was also a very humble man. He never got on anyone for making mistakes because he knew it was a part of the game and no one is perfect.In 1931, Lou was one home run shy of winning the home run title. Lou hit a soaring ball into the stands, but it bounced back and the center fielder caught it. The runner on first not knowing it was a home run jogged back to the dugout causing Lou’s home run not to count. “While his teammates and McCarthy were mad at Lary for his mistake, Lou never blamed anyone for such things. Everyone made mistakes, and Lou had made a lot of them in his early years”(Viola 59). That’s the way Lou was taught by his parents how to act. Especially since he never liked getting picked on by his classmates. The evidence above shows how the author is able to characterize Lou well, causing the reading experience to be more enjoyable.

In the end, “Lou Gehrig” is a great book because of the suspense the author creates and how he presents Lou’s character throughout the book. Although it has a sad ending, there are plenty of valuable lessons to be learned from one of the greatest baseball players of all time.

[Amy Lerdar · Rating 5 out of 5]

My husband who had been diagnosed with Bulbar ALS disease for 2 years at the age of 63 had all his symptoms reversed with Ayurveda medicine from natural herbs centre. com after undergoing their ALS/MND natural protocol, he no longer requires a feeding tube. God Bless all Lou Gehrig’s disease Caregivers. Stay Strong, take small moments throughout the day to thank yourself, to love your self, and pray to whatever faith, star, spiritual force you believe in and ask for strength. I can personally vouch for these remedy but you would probably need to decide what works best for you.

[Becky · Rating 2 out of 5]

I loved learning more about this truly great man c:

[Garrett S · Rating 5 out of 5]

January Book Review
Lou Gehrig
Kevin Viola
Did you know that Lou Gehrig was the first player on the Yankees to have his number retired? To begin with, Lou was an amazing baseball player who was underrated, but also a very hard working man. The main character of this book is Lou Gehrig he was a very good person on and off the field. He was very smart in high school he only wanted to do homework and was obsessed with good grades. Lou was doing so well in school he later got into a great college Columbia. While Lou was in college he was starting to get into sports he played soccer, basketball, track and baseball. He had a huge passion on baseball and ended up getting drafted to the Yankees in 1923. Getting drafted by an amazing Yankee team was a important event to Lou and his family. Another big event was when Lou and Babe were good friends and scary to face while pitching to them. Another surprising year was in 1934 where the Ruth's and Gehrig's got into a huge fight. This fight occurred because Mrs. Gehrig said that Babe and his wife Claire did not take care of there daughter Dorothy. So after that Babe and Lou have never talked to each other. Finally, the worst event was when Lou was diagnosed with ALS a very deadly disease. In 1941 was the day Lou Gehrig had sadly died.
This book had some very meaningful advice. One was find the job best for you. That was meaningful because originally Lou was going to do engineering, but that was bad because he failed. So baseball was a job where he was a good at and made good money. The last very most important idea was don't judge people. This occurred because in grade school people bullied Lou by his German accent and his bad sports skills, but to this day he is one of the most famous Yankee's of all time. These are main ideas that are very important to life skills. Without these themes or ideas people would be very rude.

[Alex D · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read the book Lou Gehrig by Kevin Viola for my non fictional book review. Lou is an immigrant from Germany that settled in New York at the time baseball was very popular. He was often made fun of at school but the bullies stopped when they found out about his baseball skill. Lou was hardworking at baseball, schoolwork, and his summer job. Lou finally got his chance at collage. He accepted a scholarship from the University of Columbia. After his years there, he was chosen to be on the New York Yankees. After the starting first baseman Wally Pipp got injured, Lou stepped in. He became very good at the game facing the best competition in the world. Best friends with legendary Babe Ruth, he started to be one of the best players in the game ever. He got a nickname "Iron Man" for playing over 2,000 consecutive games. Later, he was diagnosed with ALS and it later became known as "Lou Gehrig's disease" In honor of him.

[Joshua Vishney · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is Lou Gehrig by Kevin Viola. The story genre is a autobiography about the famous baseball player Lou Gehrig or also know as "The Iron House". The reason why I rated this book four out of five stars because it was good but I like to read books that have a lot of action. The book tells the story of Lou Gehrig from when he was born to when he died and all of the medals and rewards he got. I recommend this book to anyone who loves baseball and who wants to know about the famous stars back in the 1900's.

[Max · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book starts from Lou Gehrig's beginning to end. You learn the about the hardships and the achievements he had. Also, you discover how modest, loyal, easygoing and devoted to do well in baseball he is. Overall I think it was a really interesting book. The reason for that is Kevin Viola the author tells you the message that Lou Gehrig was a gentleman and had a very good work ethic.

[Heather P. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked this book a lot. If gives you a ton of facts about Lou Gehrig I recommend this book for anyone doing a biography or wanting to learn about Lou Gehrig.