Lou Gehrig and Babe Ruth

Object Details

Artist

Unidentified Artist

Sitter

Henry Louis Gehrig, 19 Jun 1903 - 2 Jun 1941

George Herman ("Babe") Ruth, 6 Feb 1895 - 17 Aug 1948

Exhibition Label

In 1927 Babe Ruth found himself in a slugging contest with teammate Lou Gehrig (1903–1941), an unassuming, humble man who was eight years Ruth’s junior and a polar opposite in personality. Gehrig played first base and was number four in the batting lineup, just behind Ruth. His forty-seven homers that season topped every other player in baseball, except for Ruth’s sixty. Gehrig was always playing in Ruth’s shadow, and, he noted, it was a “pretty big shadow.” Unbeknownst to all, Gehrig was beginning what would be his own long-standing record of playing 2,130 consecutive games—broken only in 1995 by Cal Ripken Jr. Gehrig’s streak ended in 1939 when he took himself out of the lineup, his strength noticeably ebbing from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a degenerative disease now also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease.

En 1927 Babe Ruth se enfrascó en un concurso de bateo con su compañero de equipo Lou Gehrig (1903–1941), un jugador modesto, el polo opuesto de Ruth en carácter y ocho años menor que este. Gehrig jugaba primera base y era el cuarto en la línea de bateo, justo detrás de Ruth. Con sus cuarenta y siete jonrones de esa temporada superó a todos los jugadores en la historia del deporte, excepto a Ruth, que conectó sesenta. Gehrig siempre jugó a la sombra de Ruth y, según él mismo comentó, era “una sombra bien grande”. Pero lo que nadie sabía es que Gehrig estaba en camino hacia su propio récord de 2,130 partidos consecutivos, una marca longeva que vino a romper Cal Ripken Jr. en 1995. La buena racha de Gehrig terminó en 1939, cuando decidió retirarse de la alineación al ver sus fuerzas menguadas por la esclerosis lateral amiotrófica, una enfermedad degenerativa que hoy se conoce también como la enfermedad de Lou Gehrig.

Credit Line

National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution

c. 1931

Object number

NPG.93.80

Restrictions & Rights

Usage conditions apply

Type

Photograph

Medium

Gelatin silver print

Dimensions

Image: 19.1cm x 14.3cm (7 1/2" x 5 5/8"), Accurate

Sheet: 20.3cm x 15.3cm (8" x 6"), Accurate

See more items in

National Portrait Gallery Collection

National Portrait Gallery

Topic

Exterior\Sports arena

Equipment\Sports Equipment\Baseball Equipment\Baseball

George Herman ("Babe") Ruth: Male

George Herman ("Babe") Ruth: Sports and Recreation\Athlete\Baseball

Henry Louis Gehrig: Male

Henry Louis Gehrig: Sports and Recreation\Athlete\Baseball

Portrait

Record ID

npg_NPG.93.80

Metadata Usage (text)

Usage conditions apply

GUID (Link to Original Record)

http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/sm4a590af0d-727c-476c-82c4-7056c75dc196