The 1941 baseball season is considered by many baseball historians as the greatest season of all time. Ted Williams was in the midst of hitting over .400; the Yankees’ Joe DiMaggio hit in 56 consecutive games; the Brooklyn Dodgers were locked in a fierce struggle with the St. Louis Cardinals for the National League pennant. All this while a WWII broke out and current players were conscripted into military service. One event during this season which is somewhat overlooked was the beginning of the retirement of uniform numbers. This tradition began on July 4, 1941, the day the Yankees retired Lou Gehrig’s number 4. A month earlier Gehrig succumbed to the disease which bears his name and the Yankees honored him with this Memorial. Unfortunately, the game on July 4th was rained out and the ceremony was held two days later on July 6th. This explains why this ticket has a large “VOID” stamp to the left of Gehrig’s famous portrait. This ticket has been encapsulated and authenticated by PSA/DNA (20017829).

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