Lou Gehrig Day: Celebrating a Legend of Baseball and a Face of ALS
Posted: May 19, 2021 in Other News
ALS TDI
CAMBRIDGE, MA – Lou Gehrig was a renowned baseball player. He was one of the best hitters of all time, a seven-time all-star with a career batting average of .340 and just shy of 500 home runs. He earned the nickname “The Iron Horse” for his legendary durability, setting a record for most consecutive games played, 2,130, that stood for 56 years. He played his entire major league career, from 1923 to 1939, with the New York Yankees. Still, many people remember Lou Gehrig best for the disease that bears his name: Lou Gehrig’s Disease, also known as Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) or Motor Neuron Disease.
In 1939, even after 16 seasons, he still was a valued member of the Yankees team that had won six World Series. But that year his performance began to slip inexplicably and rapidly. After undergoing testing at the Mayo clinic, he was diagnosed with ALS on June 19th, 1939 – his 36th birthday – and retired from the game a few years later. At a Lou Gehrig Appreciation Day hosted by the Yankees later that year, he gave a speech in which he famously said, despite everything that had happened, he still considered himself “the luckiest man on the face of the earth.” He passed away in 1941 at the age of 37.
For years, Lou Gehrig has been recognized as both a face of ALS and a legend of Baseball. But, until now, he did not have an official day dedicated to him by Major League Baseball, unlike some of his fellow legends like Jackie Robinson and Roberto Clemente. Due to the efforts of the Lou Gehrig Day Committee, a group of baseball fans living with or impacted by ALS, that is about to change. This past spring, Major League Baseball announced that June 2, 2021 will be recognized across the MLB as the first annual Lou Gehrig Day (LG4D).
To celebrate LG4D, teams across the league will honor Lou Gehrig’s legacy as a ballplayer while raising awareness and funds for ALS research and charities. Players on all teams will wear Lou Gehrig patches, videos about both his career and ALS awareness will be played in ballparks and on TV broadcasts, and at many games people living with ALS and/or their families will throw out the ceremonial first pitch. Teams not playing on June 2 will conduct their celebrations on June 3.
Raising ALS awareness and supporting research organizations like the ALS Therapy Development Institute (ALS TDI) is a critical part of Lou Gehrig day. Someone diagnosed with the disease today faces the same prognosis as Gehrig did in 1939, nearly 80 years later – they most often only live from three to five years. While 10% cases are linked to inherited genetic mutations, 90% of all instances of ALS are sporadic – and the cause is unknown. There are currently no effective treatments or cures.
Researchers at ALS TDI work to find treatments for everyone impacted by ALS as quickly as possible. As a rare nonprofit biotech, ALS TDI’s cutting-edge research is funded by a global community united in ending ALS. ALS is not incurable, but it is underfunded. By working to together to raise awareness and fund research, we can change that.
Want to learn more?
- To learn more about ALS TDI’s research to find effective treatments for ALS – and how you can help support it – click here. You can also show your support by purchasing our special edition baseball shirts here.
- For more information about Lou Gehrig day, visit LG4day.com, and be sure to tune in to your local baseball team of June 2 or 3 to join the celebration.
- For more about the story of how Lou Gehrig Day came to be, you can listen to our recent interview with Lou Gehrig Day committee members Tom, Steve, and Chuck Haberstroh on the Endpoints Podcast.
