(1903 - 1941, first base) Born in Manhattan to German immigrants. A football and baseball player at Columbia University, he signed with the Yankees in 1923. He became a regular in 1925, replacing Wally Pipp at first base and beginning his streak of 2130 consecutive games played (since broken by Cal Ripken Jr. in 1995) that earned him the nickname 'The Iron Horse.' His batting feats include 184 RBI in 1931 (the AL record), 23 career grand slams (the ML record for many decades, since broken by Alex Rodriguez), a triple crown in 1934, and a .340 career batting average. When it was discovered that he was suffering from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis—now commonly known as Lou Gehrig's disease—he delivered his famous 'Today, I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the Earth' speech at Yankee Stadium on July 4, 1939. In deference to Lou, no Yankee was appointed captain until Thurman Munson in 1976.