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Luke Gehrig was one of the great stars of baseball, but during his career he played in a lineup with another great, Babe Ruth.
So as it would happen, Gehrig played in the shadow of the great Babe.
Even when Luke had a great day, and he did on June 3rd, 1932, another story would overshadow his feats.
But let's not get too far ahead of our story.
The New York Yankees faced the old Philadelphia Azlakes at Philadelphia,
and it was one of those days when the pitchers should have stayed in bed.
It just wasn't a day for pitchers.
Gehrig started to slugfest with a home run with one teammate aboard in the first inning.
But ace catcher Mickey Cochran, another all-time great star, even the score at 2-2 with a homer and a bottom of the first.
Gehrig was back at the plate in the third inning with one teammate on base.
Lou picked out another fat one and headed into the stands, another homer, and the Yankees had a 4-2 lead.
But it didn't last long.
The home side bounced back, and not the Yankees started out of the box with six big runs in the fourth inning to take an 8-4 lead.
The Yankee power sent the ace pitcher to the showers as Earl Coombs and Babe Ruth smacked homers in the fifth.
That brought Gehrig to the plate for the third time.
Fans wondered when the bombing would stop, but it didn't stop with Gehrig. He picked out the first pitch and set it deep into the stands.
Three homers for the popular first baseman. Runs across the plate for both sides in the sixth inning.
The scoreboard shows the ace ahead 10-9, as Yankee fans took their seventh inning stretch.
Gehrig was one of the Yankee batters in the seventh, and a lot of fans shot her for Lou to smack another homer. He did.
Now it was all even at 10-10. He had equaled a Major League record for one game with his seventh inning blast.
But would he get another chance to bat and set a Major League mark of five homers in one game?
The Yankee started two runs to take a 12-10 lead in the eighth inning.
There was a possibility that Gehrig would get another crack at the ball. The Yankees exploded their power in the ninth.
Tony Nazzieri had a Grand Slam homer, and it was now 18-10, but the inning wasn't over.
Gehrig had another chance at bat. In 60 seconds, we were back to find out how he fared.
Lou waited for the first pitch, and swung. It was a long blast, but would it be long enough?
Philadelphia outfielder Al Simmons was off with a crack at the bat.
At the last second he jumped and grabbed the ball in front of the wall.
A great catch had Rob Lou of a record-setting homer, but still, it was quite an effort.
The Yankees won the game, and Gehrig had hit four home runs.
But there is an ironic test to our story. Instead of Gehrig's four home runs making big sport headlines, it was just another story.
Why? Well, a man by the name of John McGraw made even bigger headlines.
You see, this was a day that McGraw announced his resignation as manager of the New York Giants after 30 years.
Yes, Lou Gehrig's great feats were always overshadowed, but baseball fans will never forget him.
He was not only a great ball player, but a great American.