2000 LEGENDS OF BASEBALL #3408 Pane of 20 x 33 cents US Postage Stamps

In 2000 the USPS honored 20 baseball greats who were named to the "All-Century Team," announced after the 1999 season. Votes from fans, as well as members of a special panel, selected the team. Lou Gehrig and Babe Ruth finished first and second, respectively, in fan voting. Gehrig played an amazing 2,130 consecutive games, a record which went unbroken until 1995. "The Iron Horse" played with the New York Yankees his entire career, a career full of incredible accomplishments. He set an American League record in 1931 with 184 runs batted in; hit four home runs in one game in 1932; and recorded 23 career grand-slams. His career was cut short in 1939 when he was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a disease which today carries his name. The tradition of retiring a player's uniform began when Gehrig left the game in 1939. He was elected to the Hall of Fame in a special election that year. Babe Ruth was a man of huge achievements. He began his baseball career as a pitcher, and later moved to the outfield. After six years with the Boston Red Sox, Ruth was traded to the New York Yankees in 1920. Ruth gave baseball some of its most memorable moments. His epic smash on October 1, 1932, stands as one example. This homer, the famed "Called Shot," was hit during the third game of the World Series. Whether Ruth actually indicated his intentions to the taunting, lemon-throwing Wrigley Field crowd has been widely debated for years. Ruth came to bat in the fifth inning with the score tied. He took two balls and two strikes, and signaled after each pitch. Some say this was Ruth noting the count, not predicting his homer. On the fifth pitch, Ruth sent the ball sailing over the bleachers. The crowd, knowing it had witnessed an amazing event, went wild. According to Ruth, "I didn't exactly point to any spot. All I wanted to do was give that thing a ride out of the park...anywhere."