Kansas City Royals' George Brett Collects Career Hit 1,500

On August 29, 1982, Hall of Famer and Kansas City Royals great George Brett gets career hit 1,500.

Over his 21 major league seasons, Brett, a lifetime .305 hitter, would go on to collect 3,154 hits, consisting of 665 doubles, 137 triples and 317 home runs. He also had 1,596 RBIs, 1,583 runs scored, 1096 walks and 201 stolen bases.

Three times Brett led the league in hits, with his highest single season total coming in 1976 with 215.

Brett is also one of only four players to hit for a .300 batting average, have 300 or more home runs and have over 3,000 hits in a career. The others include three more Hall of Famers, Hank Aaron, Willie Mays and Stan Musial.

Brett finished his career with 13 All-Star appearances, with 13 consecutive appearances from 1976-1988. He was a three-time Silver Slugger Award winner in 1980, 1985 and 1988. He was a three time American League Batting Champion in 1976, 1980 and 1990. He was a Gold Glove winner in 1985 and that same year he won the World Series with the Royals. On the way to winning the World Series, Brett was named the ALCS MVP.

In 1980 Brett won his only MVP Award, as well the Hutch Award, which is given annually to an active Major League Baseball (MLB) player who "best exemplifies the fighting spirit and competitive desire" of Fred Hutchinson, by persevering through adversity.

In 1986 Brett won the Lou Gehrig Memorial Award, which is given annually to a Major League Baseball (MLB) player who best exhibits the character and integrity of Lou Gehrig, both on the field and off it.

The Kansas City Royals retired his no. 5 jersey in 1994 and in 1999 he was inducted into Cooperstown Baseball Hall of Fame with 98.2 percent of the vote on the first ballot in which he appeared. It was the fourth highest percentage of the vote given to a player ever just behind Cal Ripken Jr., Nolan Ryan, and Tom Seaver.

In 2013 Brett joined the Royals in a different capacity as a hitting coach.

St. Louis Cardinals' Lou Brock Sets MLB Career Stolen Base Record

On August 29, 1977, Hall of Famer and St. Louis Cardinals great Lou Brock eclipses Ty Cobb's 49-year-old career stolen base record of 892 steals. Brock’s record-breaking performance came as he achieved career stolen base 893 in the loss to the Padres, 4-3.

Brock would go on to steal 938 bases, leaving him as the stolen base leader until Rickey Henderson broke the feat. Currently Brock is still second on the list, more than 300 stolen bases above Juan Pierre who is third on the list with 614.

Brock’s 19-year career with the Chicago Cubs and St. Louis Cardinals saw him play in six All-Star games, including four consecutive appearances from 1971-1975. He was a two-time World Series Champion in 1964 and 1967, both with the St. Louis Cardinals.

Brock won several awards during his career, including the 1967 Babe Ruth Award, given to the player with the best performance in the postseason. The award, created by the New York chapter of the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA) in honor of Babe Ruth, was first awarded in 1949 to the MVP of the World Series, one year after Ruth's death.

The award continued to be awarded exclusively for performances in the World Series until 2007, when the New York chapter of the BBWAA changed the award to cover the entire postseason. Though it precedes the World Series Most Valuable Player Award, which was not created until 1955, the Babe Ruth Award is considered less prestigious, as it is not sanctioned by MLB and is awarded several weeks after the World Series.

Brock also won the 1975 Robert Clemente Award, which is given annually to the Major League Baseball (MLB) player who "best exemplifies the game of baseball, sportsmanship, community involvement and the individual's contribution to his team", as voted on by baseball fans and members of the media. It is named for Hall of Fame outfielder Roberto Clemente. Originally known as the Commissioner's Award, it has been presented by the MLB since 1971. In 1973, the award was renamed after Clemente following his death in a plane crash while delivering supplies to victims of the Nicaragua earthquake.

He also won the 1977 Lou Gehrig Memorial Award, which is given annually to a Major League Baseball (MLB) player who best exhibits the character and integrity of Lou Gehrig, both on the field and off it.

In 1979 Brock won two awards, the National League Comeback Player of the Year award given to the player who has the best season after an injury or dismal season. That same season Brock won the Hutch Award, which is given annually to an active Major League Baseball (MLB) player who "best exemplifies the fighting spirit and competitive desire" of Fred Hutchinson, by persevering through adversity.

Brock finished his career with a .293 batting average, with 3,023 hits, consisting of 486 doubles, 141 triples and 149 home runs. Brock also had 1,610 runs scores, 900 RBIs, and 706 walks in his career to go along with the 938 stolen bases. Eight times Brock led the league in steals with his highest single season total coming in 1974 with 118.

Although never an MVP, Brock was in the MVP conversation 10 times, with his highest finishing rank of second in 1974.

The St. Louis Cardinals retired his no. 20 jersey in 1979, and in 1985 Brock was elected into the Cooperstown Baseball Hall of Fame with 79.75 percent of the vote on the first ballot in which he appeared.

Los Angeles Dodgers' Eric Gagne Sets MLB Consecutive Save Record

On Aug. 28, 2003, Los Angeles Dodgers closer Eric Gagne sets a record with his 44th consecutive save of the 2003 season and his 52nd in a row dating back to the 2002 season.

Gagne would end the 2003 season with 55 saves in 67 appearances, both league leading earning him the NL Cy Young Award.

Gagne's streak would continue into the midst of the 2004 season and eventually earn 84 consecutive saves. Which is still more consecutive saves than that of any other closer in MLB history.

Gagne would finish his 10-year career with 187 saves, almost half of those were earned during his streak which last over three consecutive seasons.

Over the course of his career Gagne racked up 33 wins and 26 losses, with a 3.47 ERA over 643.2 innings in 402 games. He compiled an amazing 718 strikeouts compared to just 226 walks and only 13 intentional walks.

Gagne last played in 2008 for the Milwaukee Brewers where he sported a 5.44 ERA in 50 games with 10 saves.

Check out the video below of Gagne's record setting 84th consecutive save:

Chicago Cubs' Ryne Sandberg Sets MLB Record

On Aug. 28, 1990, Ryan Sandberg of the Chicago Cubs hit his 30th home of the season to help the Cubs beat the Houston Astros at the Astrodome.

It was the second year in a row the future Hall of Famer hit at least 30 home runs, becoming the first Major League second baseman to do that. Sandberg wasn't done in 1990 either. He ended up with 40 home runs. He hit an even 30 in 1989.

Ryne Sandberg played 16 years in the major leagues, his first with the Philadelphia Phillies, but as a result of a classic ill-advised trade on the part of Philadelphia, was sent to the Cubs in year two and played the next 15 seasons on the North side of Chicago.

Sandberg was a career. 285 hitter, appeared in 10 All-Star games, was National League Most Valuable Player in 1984, and elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2005.

  

Since Sandberg retired second base has still been a position with limited power but a few players after him have completed the feat.

Jeff Kent hit 30 home runs in three consecutive seasons.

Alfonso Soriano hit 30 home runs in three consecutive seasons.

Chase Utley also hit 30 home runs in three consecutive seasons.

Dan Uggla is the current record holder with five consecutive seasons with 30 or more home runs.

Oakland Athletics' Mark McGwire Hits First Major League Home Run

On August 25, 1986, Oakland Athletics first baseman Mark McGwire hits his first of 583 Major League home runs.

In 1987, McGwire aka “Big Mac” broke the single-season home run record for rookies, with 49. Throughout his career Mark McGwire hit 49 or more home runs five times en route to hitting 583 career home runs. Four times McGwire led the league in home runs. For his career, McGwire averaged a home run once every 10.61 at bats, the best at bats per home run ratio in baseball history (Babe Ruth is second at 11.76).

1n 1998 McGwire aka Big Mac and Sammy Sosa both encountered on a record-breaking home run season. McGwire and Sosa would both end up breaking Babe Ruth’s single season home run record of 61 home runs, as Sosa went on to hit 66 home runs and McGwire 70.

McGwire’s 70 home run season was a Major League record until 2002 when Barry Bonds broke the feat when he hit 72 home runs. McGwire is still one of only two players to hit 70 or more home runs in a season. The other, Bonds.

McGwire finished his career with a .263 career batting average, 1,626 hits, and 1,167 runs, 1,414 RBIs to go along with his 583 home runs. His career on base percentage was .394, his career slugging percentage was .588 and his on base plus slugging was .982.

McGwire was the 1987 American League Rookie of the Year, and was a 12-time All-Star including six-straight appearances twice, from 1987-1992 and from 1995-2000. He was a two-time World Series Champion, once as a player with the Oakland Athletics in 1989 and once as a coach with the St. Louis Cardinals in 2011. He won a Golden Glove at first base with the A’s in 1990 and won three Silver Slugger awards, two with the A’s in 1992 and 1996 and one with the Cardinals in 1998. McGwire also won the 1992 Home Run Derby and was given the Lou Gehrig Award in 1999.

Also in 1999 McGwire was named to the Major League Baseball All-Century Team.

McGwire played for Team USA in the Los Angeles Olympics in 1984 helping Team USA earn a Silver medal. McGwire also helped the United States in international play during the Pan American Games and Intercontinental Cup in 1983 helping the USA earn a Bronze and Silver medals respectively.

In 1999, The Sporting News released a list of the 100 Greatest Baseball Players. The list had been compiled during the 1998 season and included statistics through the 1997 season. McGwire was ranked at Number 91.

In 2005, The Sporting News published an update of their list and McGwire had been moved up to Number 84.

However, in the 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, and 2013 balloting for the Baseball Hall of Fame, McGwire failed to attain election receiving 128 of the 545 cast (23.5 percent of the vote) in 2007, 128 of 543 (23.6) in 2008, 118 of 539 (21.9) in 2009, 128 of 539 (23.7) in 2010, 115 of 581 (19.8) in 2011, 112 of 573 (19.5) in 2012, 96 of 569 (16.9) in 2013 and 63 of 571 (11.0) in 2014.

Currently McGwire is the hitting coach for the Los Angeles Dodgers, after being the hitting coach for the St. Louis Cardinals from 2010-2012.

McGwire had a Hall of Fame career based on his stats and accomplishments, but because of his trouble with performance enhancing drugs (PED) his call to the hall might come in to questioning.

Check out the video below that has McGwire's first Major League home run:

New York Mets' Dwight Gooden Gets 20th Victory

On Aug. 25, 1985, the New York Mets defeat the San Diego Padres 9-3, making Mets starting pitcher Dwight Gooden the youngest pitcher to ever win 20 games in a season. At 20 years and nine months old, the second-year Met was a full month younger than Bob Feller, who won 24 games for the Cleveland Indians in 1939. The win was also his fourteenth in a row.

Gooden finished the season with a 24-4 record, a 1.53 ERA, 16 complete games, and 268 strikeouts in 276-and-two-thirds innings -- all of which led the National League. He won the Cy Young Award that year, just one season after winning the Rookie of the Year Award, and joined Herb Score as the only pitchers to strikeout 200 batters in their first two seasons. He was already being touted as one of the greatest pitchers of all time and was a sure-fire Hall of Famer just on talent alone.

 

Sadly, Gooden never lived up to his expectations. 1985 was the final year he won 20 games, although he did follow that up with six solid seasons. After that, his career became a bona fide trainwreck, as he struggled to overcome addictions to both alcohol and cocaine. He retired with a record of 194-112, and as one of the biggest what-ifs in baseball history.

Check out the video below of Gooden earning his 20th win:

Major League Baseball Suspends Pete Rose For Life

On August 24, 1989, former Major League Baseball player and manager Pete Rose is suspended from baseball for life for gambling on the sport.

Rose had a long and storied career, which saw stints playing and coaching on the Cincinnati Reds, Montreal Expos and the Philadelphia Phillies.

Rose would total 4,256 hits in his career with 3,215 singles.

Rose finished his career with a .303 batting average, 4,256 hits, 746 doubles, 135 triples, 160 home runs, 1,314 RBIs, 2,165 runs scored, 198 stolen bases and 1,566 walks.

Rose has 67 more hits than Ty Cobb who is the second ranked player on the list, and nearly 500 more hits than Hank Aaron who is ranked third all-time. Rose would also earn 17 more Major League records during his career, th

e most notable behind the hits record is most career games played, 3,562, which is 254 more than Carl Yastrzemski of the Boston Red Sox who played in 3,308 games between 1961 and 1983. 

Over the course of his career Rose played every single game of the season eight times, and five times led the league in games played. Rose led the league in batting average three times, with his highest single season average being .348 in 1969. He led the league in hits seven times with his highest single season hit total 230, coming in 1973. He also led the league in runs scored four times. His highest single season total of runs scored came in 1976 with 130 runs scored.

Rose would win the National League Most Valuable Player (MVP) Award in 1973 and was in the top 10 in MVP voting 10 times over his career. 1973 also was a season Rose was the National League batting champion. Rose was a three time World Series Champion in 1975, 1976 with the Reds and 1980 with the Phillies.

Rose won the Rookie of the Year award in 1963, was a Gold Glove winner twice, and a Silver Slugger once.

Rose would be selected to 17 All-Star games in his 24-season career. The most famous occurrence of Rose in an All-Star game came in 1970, when Rose smashed into then Cleveland Indians catcher Ray Fosse on a play at the plate. Rose would give Fosse a separated shoulder with the incident, but scored the winning run in the process.

Rose even though the all-time hit leader in MLB, and owner of over 17 Major League records has not been elected into Cooperstown the baseball Hall of Fame because of gambling on baseball.

Nolan Ryan Gets 5,000th Strikeout

On August 22, 1989, Texas Rangers great Nolan Ryan strikes out the 5,000th batter of his career. The batter would be another future Hall of Famer, Rickey Henderson of the Oakland Athletics

Ryan although with the Rangers in 1989, he enjoyed the best years of his career with the California Angels, where he threw four of his MLB record seven no-hitters. The seven are three more than any other pitcher. He is tied with Bob Feller for most one-hitters, with 12. Ryan also pitched 18 two-hitters. Despite the seven no-hitters, he never threw a perfect game, nor did he ever win a Cy Young Award.

Only Ryan, Sandy Koufax (four), Cy Young (three), Bob Feller (three), and Larry Corcoran (three) have pitched more than two no-hitters. Corcoran was the first pitcher to throw a second no-hitter in a career (in 1882), as well as the first to throw a third (in 1884).

Ryan is one of only 29 players in baseball history to have appeared in Major League baseball games in four decades and the only pitcher to have struck out seven pairs of fathers and sons. While his lifetime winning percentage was .526, Ryan was an eight-time MLB All-Star, with 324 wins and 292 losses. With a career 3.19 earned run average.

Ryan would finish his career with 5,714 career strikeouts, which rank first in major league baseball history by a significant margin. He leads the runner-up, Randy Johnson, by 839 strikeouts. Similarly, Ryan's 2,795 bases on balls lead second-place Steve Carlton by 962; walking over 50 percent more hitters than any other pitcher in Major League history.

The list of current 3000 strikeout pitchers includes in this order from most to least, Nolan Ryan, 5,714, Randy Johnson, 4,875, Roger Clemens, 4,672, Steve Carlton, 4,136, Bert Blyleven, 3,701, Tom Seaver, 3,640, Don Sutton, 3,574, Gaylord Perry, 3,534, Walter Johnson, 3,509, Greg Maddux, 3,371, Phil Niekro, 3,342, Ferguson Jenkins, 3,192, Pedro Martinez, 3,154, Bob Gibson, 3,117, Curt Schilling, 3,116 and John Smoltz, 3,084.

Ryan and Koufax are the only two pitchers inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame who had more strikeouts than innings pitched. Other than Jackie Robinson (whose number was retired by the entire MLB), Ryan is currently the only major league baseball player to have his number retired by at least three different teams: the Angels, Astros, and Rangers.

Ryan was inducted into Cooperstown Hall of Fame in 1999 with 98.79 percent of the vote on the first ballot in which he appeared.

While Henderson helped Ryan set an MLB record with strikeout 5,000, he would also go on to have a great career.

Henderson was a left fielder who played in Major League Baseball for nine teams from 1979 to 2003, including four stints with his original team, the Oakland Athletics.

Nicknamed "The Man of Steal", he is widely regarded as the sport's greatest leadoff hitter and base runner/ holding the record for most career leadoff home runs with 81, and winning three Silver Slugger awards in 1981, 1985 and 1990. His 1,406 career steals are almost double the previous record of 938 by Lou Brock, and more than 700 above the current active leader in stolen bases, Juan Pierre, who has 611 as of Aug. 21, 2013.

Henderson is the all-time stolen base leader for the Oakland A’s and previously held the New York Yankees' franchise record from 1988-2011.

He also holds the major league records for runs scored and unintentional walks.

Henderson also holds the single-season record for stolen bases (130 in 1982) and is the only player in AL history to steal 100 bases in a season, having done so three times.

A 12-time stolen base champion, Henderson led the league in runs five times and was among the league's top ten base stealers in 21 different seasons.

Henderson was named the AL's Most Valuable Player in 1990, and he was the leadoff hitter for two World Series champions: the 1989 Oakland A's and the 1993 Toronto Blue Jays.

At the time of his last major league game in 2003, the ten-time American League (AL) All-Star ranked among the sport's top 100 all-time home run hitters and was its all-time leader in base on balls.

His 25-year career elevated Henderson to the top ten in several other categories, including career at bats, games, and outfield putouts and total chances.

His high on-base percentage, power hitting, and stolen base and run totals made him one of the most dynamic players of his era.

He was further known for his unquenchable passion for playing baseball and a buoyant, eccentric and quotable personality that both perplexed and entertained fans.

Once asked if he thought Henderson was a future Hall of Famer, statistician Bill James replied, "If you could split him in two, you'd have two Hall of Famers.

In 2009, he was inducted to the Baseball Hall of Fame on his first ballot appearance with 94.8 percent of the vote.

The Oakland Athletics also retired Henderson’s no. 24 jersey in 2009.

Anaheim Angels Garret Anderson Has 10 RBI Game

 On Aug. 21, 2007, Anaheim Angels outfielder Garret Anderson gets 10 RBI’s against the New York Yankees.

The game was an 18-9 victory by the Angels over the Yankees. Anderson’s performance started in the first inning as he drove in two runs on a double off of Yankees pitcher Mike Mussina.

Anderson would continue his day with another RBI-double in the second inning, making his RBI total three, through two innings.

In the third inning Anderson would hit a three-run homer off the Yank’s, making his RBI total 6 through three innings and putting the score at 12-5.

Anderson would make his first out of the game in the bottom of the fifth, but when he came back up to bat in the sixth, Anderson continued his tear. He hit another home run, this time a grand slam, putting his RBI total for the game at 10, and putting the score at 18-5.

Anderson would get out in his final at-bat during the eighth inning, ending the day going 4-6 with 10 RBI’s, including a three run homer and a grand slam.

This would be Anderson’s most prolific game from the batters box. Anderson finished his career with 287 home runs, 1,365 RBI’s, a .293 average and 2,529 hits.

Milwaukee Brewers Closer Rollie Fingers Gets 300th Save

On Aug. 21, 1982, Milwaukee Brewers closer Rollie Fingers gets his 300th save as a pitcher.

Fingers started his career as a member of the Oakland Athletics in 1968, the year the team moved from Kansas City to Oakland. He played for the Athletics from 1968-1976, earning himself three World Series titles with the club in 1972, 1973 and 1974. In 1974 he was also named the World Series MVP.

Fingers was a starter with the A’s until 1970 when he began making relief appearances. In 1971 A’s manager Dick Williams made up his mind that Fingers would be a relief pitcher and the rest is history.

In 1977 the San Diego Padres picked up Fingers, where he played from 1977-1980. Fingers won the National League Rolaids Relief Man of the Year in 1977, 1978 and 1980 with the Padres. He was also a two-time National League saves champion in 1977 and 1978. In 1980 Fingers broke Hoyt Wilhelm’s record of most saves in a career with his 228th.

In 1981 Fingers was back in the American League with the Milwaukee Brewers. He was continuing to get saves at an impressive rate, and once again won the Rolaids Relief Man of the Year award but this time in the American League. He was also the American League saves champion in 1981. But the most impressive feat of all that season was that Fingers was named the American League MVP and the American League CY Young.

In 1982 Fingers recorded his 300th save, and was the first closer in Major League history to do so. When Fingers retired in 1985 he finished his career with 341 saves, 114 wins and 118 losses, making him the first pitcher with 300 saves and also to have 100 wins, he also recorded 1,299 strikeouts in his career.

Fingers was elected into the Cooperstown Baseball Hall of Fame in 1992. Both the Athletics and the Brewers have retired his jersey No. 34.

Fingers is regarded to as one of the pioneers of modern relief pitching, especially for defining the role of the closer.

New York Mets' Howard Johnson Has Second 30/30 Season

On Aug. 20, 1989, New York Mets' slugger Howard Johnson joins Bobby Bonds and Willie Mays as the only players to have more than one season with 30 home runs and 30 stolen bases.

The players who had done it once before Johnson had done it twice included Ken Williams, Hank Aaron, Tommy Harper, Dale Murphy, Joe Carter and Eric Davis, as the only players to hit 30 home runs and steal 30 bases in a single season. Mays completed the feat twice and Bonds five times before Johnson did it his second time.

Since Johnson joined the club of players to complete the feat twice in 1989, these players have joined the club once; Darryl Strawberry, Jose Canseco, Dante Bichette, Ellis Burks, Barry Larkin, Larry Walker, Shawn Green, Alex Rodriguez, Preston Wilson, Carlos Beltran, Jose Cruz Jr., David Wright, Jimmy Rollins, Brandon Phillips, Grady Sizemore, Hanley Ramirez, Matt Kemp, Jacoby Ellsbury and Mike Trout last year.

Johnson would go on to complete the feat a third time in 1991, putting him in an elite class with just Bobby Bonds, and then later to be joined by Barry Bonds who completed the feat five times during his career and Alfonso Soriano who has completed the feat four times so far in his career.

Both Bonds, father Bobby and son Barry have the most 30-30 seasons with five each.

Other players to have more than one 30-30 season include; Ron Gant, Sammy Sosa, Jeff Bagwell, Raul Mondesi, Vladimir Guerrero, Bobby Abreu, Ian Kinsler and Ryan Braun.

Of the players to join the 30-30 club, only these players had a 40-40 season; Canseco 42 home runs, 40 steals; Barry Bonds 42 home runs, 40 steals; Alex Rodriguez 42 home runs and 46 steals; Alfonso Soriano 46 home runs and 41 steals.

The only players on the list to be inducted into the Hall of Fame include Mays, Aaron and Larkin.

Johnson ended his career as a two-time All-Star, a two-time World Series Champion, a two-time Silver Slugger Award winner. He was also the National League Home Run Champion and NL RBI Champion in 1991.

Three times Johnson was in the MVP conversation, being in the top 10 in voting three times, and in the top five in voting twice.

Johnson would finish his 14-year career with a .249 batting average, with 1,229 hits with 237 doubles, 22 triples and 228 home runs. He also had 760 runs scored, 760 RBIs, 692 walks, 231 stolen bases and struck out 1,053 times.

Johnson led the league in runs scored once, with his highest single season total of 108 coming in 1991, although he did not lead the league that year. He also led the league in home runs once, with his highest single season total of 38 coming in 1991. Also in 1991 Johnson led the league in RBIs, that was also the year he hit his highest single season total of 117.

The 1991 season was a great one for Johnson as he set several records as he became the only switch-hitter to ever lead the NL in both home runs and RBIs in the same season. He also became the only Met to lead the National League in RBI. Finally he became the first switch-hitter to lead the National League in RBI. (Lance Berkman became the second in 2002.)

In 2001, Johnson was on the Baseball Hall of Fame ballot but received no votes.

Currently Johnson is part of the Seattle Mariners franchise as a Hitting Coach for the 2014 season part of the new coaching staff that was put in place during the off season.

Lou Gehrig Hits MLB Record Grand Slam

On Aug. 20, 1938, Hall of Famer and New York Yankees great Lou Gehrig hits his last grand slam of his career, a former Major League Baseball record, 23.

Since only one player has surpasses Gehrig’s feat, another current Yankee, Alex Rodriguez who has 24 in his career.

Of current players on the list with most all-time grand slams Rodriguez, 24, Jason Giambi, 15, Travis Hafner, 12, Raul Ibanez, 11, Robinson Cano, 8, Mark Teixeria, 8, Nick Swisher, 7, Lance Berkman, 6, Curtis Granderson, 6, Vernon Wells, 6, Eric Chavez, 5 are on or have played on the Yankees at one point in their career.

Of the players with more than 10 grand slams in their career Jorge Posada, 10, Dave Winfield, 11, Bernie Williams, 11, Tino Martinez, 11, Reggie Jackson, 11, Cecil Fielder, 11, Don Baylor, 13, Gary Sheffield, 13, Joe DiMaggio, 13, Babe Ruth, 16, Dave Kingman, 16 played on the Yankees.

Gehrig goes down as one of the greatest players to ever don the Yankee’s pin-stripes and the nickname “Iron Horse” for the consecutive games played streak had his career cut short by amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a disorder now commonly known in the United States and Canada as Lou Gehrig's disease.

Despite the debilitating disease Gehrig finished his career with 2,164 games played with a .340 batting average, with 2,721 hits, with 534 doubles, 163 triples, and 493 home runs. He also had 1,995 RBIs, 1,888 runs scored, 1,508 walks, 102 stolen bases and stuck out 790 times in his career.

Gehrig lead the league in games played seven times, including not missing a game for 13-consecutive seasons. He led the league in RBIs five times, with his highest single season total coming in 1931 with 184. He led the league in runs scored four times with his highest single season total coming in 1936 with 167. He also led the league in home runs three times, with his highest single season total coming in 1934 and 1936 when he hit 49 home runs. Gehrig also led the league in walks three times with his highest single season total coming in 1935 with 132 walks.

Gehrig led the league in doubles twice, with his highest single season total coming 1927 with 52. He led the league in triples once with his highest single season total coming in 1926 with 20.

Gehrig also led the league in batting average once, with his highest single season total coming in 1930 when he hit .379. However, he did not lead the league that year.

Gehrig was a seven-time All-Star, a six-time World Series Champion with the Yankees. He also won two MVP awards in 1927 and 1936. He was the Yankees captain from 1935 to 1938 and the Yankees retired his no. 4 jersey on July 4, 1939. He became the first baseball player to have his uniform number retired on January 6, 1940; his July 4, 1939 farewell to baseball speech, fans voted as the fifth-greatest moment in Major League Baseball history in 2002.

Gehrig won a triple crown in 1934 batting .363 with 49 home runs and 165 RBIs, but did not win the MVP award that year. He became the only player in MLB history to collect 400 total bases in five seasons as he did so in 1927, 1930, 1931, 1934 and 1936.

With St. Louis Cardinals great Stan Musial, Gehrig is only one of two players with at least 500 doubles, 150 triples and 450 home runs in his career. He is also only one of four players with Babe Ruth, Ted Williams and Musial to end career with a minimum .330 batting average with 450 home runs and 1,800 RBIs. He is also only one of two players to hit 40 doubles and 40 home runs in the same season three separate times.

The Yankees dedicated a monument to Gehrig in center field at Yankee Stadium on July 6, 1941, the shrine lauding him as, "A man, a gentleman and a great ballplayer whose amazing record of 2,130 consecutive games should stand for all time." Gehrig's monument joined the one placed there in 1932 to Miller Huggins, which would eventually be followed by Babe Ruth's in 1949.

Gehrig's birthplace in Manhattan, at 1994 Second Avenue (near E. 103rd Street), is memorialized with a plaque marking the site, as is another early residence on E. 94th Street (near Second Avenue). (As of 26/12/2011, the first mentioned plaque is not present due to ongoing construction. The second mentioned plaque is present, but ascribes to his birthplace, not early residence.) The Gehrigs' white house at 5204 Delafield Avenue in the Riverdale section of the Bronx, where Lou Gehrig died, still stands today on the east side of the Henry Hudson Parkway and is likewise marked by a plaque.

Gehrig was named a member of the MLB All-Century team in 1999, MLB All-Time team in 1997 and was inducted into Cooperstown’s Baseball Hall of Fame in 1939 through a special election.

Also in 1999, editors at Sporting News ranked Lou Gehrig sixth on their list of "Baseball's 100 Greatest Players."

Gehrig was also the first athlete ever to appear on a box of Wheaties.

Atlanta Braves' Hank Aaron Breaks Stan Musial's Record

On August 18, 1973, Hank Aaron records career extra base hit 1,378 surpassing St. Louis Cardinals great Stan Musial’s record.

Aaron would go on to record 1,477 extra base hits. Only he and former San Francisco Giants slugger Barry Bonds have surpassed Musial’s total. However, Aaron still has the most extra bas hits as Bonds finished his career with 1,440.

Henry Aaron also known as "Hammerin' Hank Aaron," is a retired American baseball right fielder that played 23 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1954 through 1976. Aaron spent 21 seasons with the Milwaukee and Atlanta Braves in the National League (NL) before playing for the Milwaukee Brewers of the American League (AL) for the final two years of his career. Aaron is considered to be one of the greatest baseball players of all time. In 1999, The Sporting News ranked Aaron fifth on their "100 Greatest Baseball Players" list.

After playing with the Indianapolis Clowns of the Negro American League and in the minor leagues, Aaron started his major league career in 1954. In his final season, he was the last Negro League baseball player on a major league roster. 

His most notable achievement was breaking the career home run record set by Babe Ruth. During his career, Aaron performed at a consistently high level for an extended period of time. He hit 24 or more home runs every year from 1955 through 1973, and is the only player to hit 30 or more home runs in a season at least fifteen times.

Aaron made the All-Star team every year from 1955 through 1975 and won three Gold Glove Awards. In 1957, he won the NL Most Valuable Player (MVP) Award, while that same year, the Braves won the World Series.

Aaron's consistency helped him to establish a number of important hitting records. He holds the MLB records for the most career runs batted in (RBIs) (2,297), the most career extra base hits (1,477), and the most career total bases (6,856).

Aaron is also in the top five for career hits with 3,771 (third), behind only Detroit Tigers Ty Cobb (4,191) and Cincinnati Reds Pete Rose (4,256) and runs with 2,174, which is tied for fourth with Babe Ruth, and only behind San Francisco Giants Barry Bonds (2,227), Cobb (2,246) and Oakland Athletics Rickey Henderson (2,295).

Aaron is one of only four players to have at least seventeen seasons with 150 or more hits, the other three are New York Yankees Derek Jeter, Rose and Cobb.

He also is in second place in home runs (755), to Bonds (762) and at-bats (12,364) to Rose (14,053) and in third place in games played (3,298), behind only Red Sox Carl Yastrzemski (3,308) and Rose (3,562). At the time of his retirement, Aaron held most of the game's key career power hitting records outright, including most total bases with 6,856, most RBI’s with 2,297, extra-base hits 1,477.

Aaron is also the only player with 700 home runs and 3,000 hits, and one of only two players with 600 home runs and 3,000 hits, the other being Willie Mays. He is also one of only four players with 500 home runs and 3,000 hits, the others being Mays, Eddie Murray and Rafael Palmeiro.

Aaron finished his career with .305 batting average, 25 All-Star game appearances, and two NL Batting titles in 1956 and 1959, and was a four-time NL home run champ in 1957, 1963, 1966-1967.

The Atlanta Braves and Milwaukee Brewers retired his no. 44 jersey. He was named to Major League Baseball All-Century Team in 1999.

Aaron was inducted into the Cooperstown Baseball’s Hall of Fame in 1982, on the first ballot in which he appeared, with 97.83 percent of the vote.