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Who started baseball's famous streak?
By A.J. RUSSO, Ph.D.
As published Sept. 5, 2007
In commemoration of Cal Ripken's Baseball Hall of Fame induction, here are my top five baseball achievements of all time.
5. Yankees 26 World Series' Championships
The Yankees are the greatest dynasty in baseball, arguably in all of sports, but their greatest supremacy occurred between 1927 and 1953. Since 1958, while successful, the Yankees have not been dominant.
From 1921-1958, the Yankees won 24 pennants and 18 World Championships. Between 1960-2007, the Yankees won 15 pennants and 8 World Championships.
4. Hank Aaron passing the Babe with his 715th homer
On April 4th, 1974, at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium, in the fourth inning of a game against the Los Angeles Dodgers, Hank Aaron hit his 715th home run, breaking Babe Ruth's longstanding record for homers, which Aaron had days earlier tied on his first swing of the '74 baseball season.
3. Cal Ripken's 2,632 consecutive games
Baltimore Orioles' third baseman Cal Ripken, who had not missed a game since 1982, removed himself from the lineup in a game against New York Yankees at Camden Yards, after playing in 2,632 consecutive games (breaking Lou Gehrig's record of 2,130 consecutive games). A staggering feat of endurance.
2. Ty Cobb's lifetime batting average record of .367
Among the five original inductees to the Baseball Hall of Fame, he is arguably the greatest baseball player who ever put on spikes. During his 24-year career, he established records in virtually every area of the offensive game.
His .367 lifetime average stands as the best in baseball history, a virtually unattainable goal for hitters. He is also number one all-time in runs scored, number two in hits and triples, number three in stolen bases, and number four in runs batted in, doubles, at bats and games played.
1. Joe DiMaggio's 56 game hitting streak
A hit every game for two months, from May 15 through July 17, 1941-wow! After the streak was stopped, thanks in large part to a pair of fine defensive plays by Cleveland third baseman Ken Keltner, Joe started a 16-game hitting streak. Thus, he hit safely in 72 of 73 games.
The Yankees went 41-13-2 during the streak, which included a 14-game winning streak and 19 multiple-hit games by DiMaggio.
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Two that didn't make my list, but were awfully close.
Don Larsen's perfect World Series game. The New York Yankees and Brooklyn Dodgers generated World Series excitement in six encounters between 1941 and 1956. But nothing ever compared to the perfect game thrown by one of the lesser-known pitchers of the time in their last meeting.
In Game 5 of the 1956 World Series, Larsen set down 27 Dodgers in a row to get a win for the Yankees, 2-0. It was the only perfect game to ever be thrown in a World Series.
Johnny Vander Meer's back-to-back no-hitters. A four-time All-Star, Vander Meer is the only pitcher in major league history to pitch two consecutive no-hitters.
On June 11, 1938, he no-hit the Boston Bees at Crosley Field (Boston switched from Braves to Bees after a dismal 1935 season, only to switch back in 1940). Four nights later, in the first night game played at Ebbets Field, he no-hit the Brooklyn Dodgers.
[A.J. Russo received his BS at Hobart College and Masters and Ph.D. at Roswell Park Memorial Institute. He is a professor at Mount Saint Mary's College in Emmitsburg and the author of 10 novels and more than 30 scientific papers. He is the former head men's lacrosse coach at RIT and Mount Saint Mary's College. His opinions do not necessarily reflect those of Mount Saint Mary's College nor the Mt. Airy Messenger.
Russo's novel, The Healer, published by Port Town Publishing, has been critically acclaimed. His novel, the Fragile Egg was re-released in 2006 and his novel, New Lodge Affair, released last month. All are available at Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com.
Visit A.J. Russo's Podcast, Novels in Progress, where you can listen to the first five chapters of his newest novel, Recall. New chapters will be posted each week at web.mac.com/ajrusso1/]
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