And im kerry sayers and im your host, bill kurtis. This is baseballs greats through the decades. Today here on through the decades we are taking the hour to look at the boys of october and the game they love. Baseball has proved to be a muse for poets, musicians and authors and moviemakers. You can debate whether its still americas favorite sport but its motions and rhythms are so ingrained in our american psyche, it will forever be our National Pastime. Joins us as we look back on the greats of the game who have earned their place not only in baseball lore but enshrined in the american story itself. So we begin with a young player in new york. As popular legend goes, in june, 1925, wally pipp, the new york yankees long time first baseman, had a headache and his skipper recommended he take a seat to let the kid play. An easy decision at the time with the yanks struggling. It also proved to jump start an unbelievable streak and the career for the kid we would know as lou gehrig. Today, i consider myself, the luckiest man on the face of the earth. The man who would be baseballs iron horse was was born to german immigrants in new yorks upper east side. The same year of the first world series. Lou gehrig would attend Columbia College on both a football and baseball scholarship. Despite the fact he was a football player, he did not have the square shoulders. He had the lovely sloaping shoulders that mean flexibility and batting strength. Gehrig was 22 years old when he signed with the yankees. He saw limited playing time in his first two years mostly as a pinch hitter. Once gehrig stepped foot on the field to replace pipp at first, he did not miss a game for the next 14 years starting a streak that spanned 2,130 games. Along the way, he and ruth cemented their place in one of all timegreatest lineups and together, they redefined power in baseball. Unparalelled in all history, ruth and gehrig coming up together and you couldnt walk one without risking what would happen to the next guy you pitched to. The numbers gehrig put up along the way were astounding. The left handed slugger had seven seasons with 150 or more rbis, eight seasons with 200 or more hits and five seasons with more than 40 home runs. He was a seven time all star, two time almvp, a triple crown winner and a six time world series champion. And though hed play second fiddle, first to ruth and later to joe dimaggio, gehrig earned the respect of those he played with. He was a great team man. He hated to lose like everybody does but lou was the type of fella whod come in and wed be threefour runs behind and he says, come on now. Were not beat yet the fact that he played so well and kept the streak alive for so long was even more impressive considering how often he played hurt. His injuries included a broken thumb, a broken toe and back spasms. Later in his career, gehrigs hands were xrayed and doctors found 17 different fractures that he played through. What finally benched him was a ls, a disease now named after him. In 39, after he only scraped together six singles in the first seven games, he went to manager joe mccarthy an asked to be taken out of the lineup we never knew how serious it was when he first took himself out and naturally we felt bad to see his streak broken because i think we were more or less, more interested i believe, the players on our club, in keeping his streak alive than lou was. Lou was more or less. He said he wasnt helping. He felt he wasnt helping the club when he took himself out of the lineup. Then on july 4 of that year, the yankees honored gehrig in between the games of a double header. The day was advertised as a tribute to lou. There was such an outpouring of fans that every seat at Yankee Stadium was filled and official after official and player after player of the yankees came along and spoke into the microphone and spoke with great affection of lou and what he meant to them. Then it was gehrigs turn to step to the mic. Today, i consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth. And i might have been given a bad break but ive got an awful lot to live for. Thank you. Thats the day i saw photographers cry. Gehrig died two years after that famous farewell speech. His consecutive games streak stood for 56 years and was long considered unbreakable until cal ripken, junior surpassed it in 1995. When our look at baseball greats through the decades continues, we remember the man who wore 42 and became the first to break baseballs color barrier. The curse, the mystique and the man whose name will forever be ranked among the sports biggest legends. Then, a little known story of a non player but a legend all the same and who many call, the sodfather. Plus, when a San Francisco slugger achieved a Gold Standard securing his place in history. A world series miracle home run that forever made one man a boston hero. And the lefthanded hitter who left behind a record that still stands today. Its all still ahead right here on through the decades. Its all still ahead right here on through the decades. In 1947, at brooklyns ebbets field, the brooklyn dodgers took on the boston braves. It was a game that would change baseball forever. Not because of the who won or lost but because of a player who stepped onto the field that day bearing the number 42, Jackie Robinson. During Major League Baseballs first several decades names like ruth, cobb and gehrig turned the league into the heart of a National Pastime but in the segregationist america of the early twentieth century, national was far more exclusive than it was inclusive. The big leagues were reserved for whites. An imaginary colorline encircled every diamond in the majors leaving black ball players left to play in socalled negro leagues where the money was scarce but the talent was plentiful. Satchel paige, josh gibson and Roy Campanella were just a few of the stars whod bring the negro leagues to prominence in the 1930s but the colorline dividing them from the major leagues was notoriously stubborn and it would take a man Like Branch Rickey to finally snap it in half. In the mid1940s rickey, the general manager of the brooklyn dodgers, began making plans to recruit a player from the negro leagues. A decision that was met with plenty of raised eyebrows. I think that being a very religious man the way that he was and knowing that black ball players could not play in Major League Baseball and professional baseball, i just think he wanted to do something about it. Rickey set his sights on Jackie Robinson, a shortstop with the kansas city monarchs and in 1945 approached him with an offer. But that offer came with a condition which resulted in a Famous Exchange between rickey and robinson later portrayed in 1950s the story of Jackie Robinson with robinson playing himself. Suppose i collide with you at second base and when i get up i say you, you dirty black so andso what do you do . Mr. Rickey, do you want a ball player whos afraid to fight back . I want a ball player with guts enough not to fight back. Robinson accepted the terms and in 1946 suited up with the dodgers farm team, the montreal royals. This is truly an historic day here in jersey city. A 27 year old negro named Jackie Robinson is playing his first game for the montreal royals, the dodger farm club. Robinson steps to the plate. Heres the pitch swing and a long drive into deep left field, it might be. Home run Jackie Robinson robinson thrived in montreal. He was named the leagues most valuable player and with just days to go before the start of 1947 season, he was signed to his First Major League contract debuting for the brooklyn dodgers on april 15, 1947. It was a day when somehow people knew, thoughtful people, educated people hey, its not just whites playing a game on a diamond anymore. Forget the architecture so regalled by baseball writers. Suddenly it was a new beginning. The long standing colorline was finally broken but being the first black major leaguer, jackie quickly found himself the object of scorn not only among fans but among some of his own teammates as well many who petitioned againstthe very idea of robinson wearing a big league uniform. And i said, i dont about any petition but they tell me you got one up and i dont about any petition but ill tell you what you can do with it because robinsons gonna play on this ball club cause i dont look at the color. I dont care whether hes green, black, yellow, white. He has talent and he will put money in your pocket and my pocket. This is some kind of player and hes gonna be here and im warning you now that hes only the first of many to follow. jackie wassome kind of player. He won rookie of the year in 1947 and went on to have a hall of fame career. Jackie robinson runner at third base takes his lead. And the and robinson is going to try to steal home he is safe at home plate yogi berras going crazy berra thought he had him but Jackie Robinson has stolen home. But more important than his play on the field was the attitude, the defiance, the courage he displayed in a world that wanted nothing to do with him simply because of the color of his skin. April 15, 1947 wasnt just a turning point for Major League Baseball, it was a turning point for an entire country. Many names have made a mark on the game of baseball through the decades but no one has had a Lasting Impact quite like babe ruth. When we return, well take you back to the final game for the great bambino. Plus, we feature a baseball great who may not be known for playing the game but has been an essential part of the field for decades the sodfather. This is through the decades. Sultan of swat. On may 30, 1935, babe ruth played his final Major League Baseball game. It was the end to a celebrated career. As for the lore that career created, it was only just the beginning. Created, it was only just the beginning. Babe ruth hits a home run for boston with a man on second. For 22 seasons that swing and that trip around the bases turned babe ruth into an american hero. A towering legend of baseball with an eternal mystique that lingers over the sport he changed forever. Babe ruth came up during the socalled deadball era when the game relied more on strategy, smallball techniques like bunting and stealing bases. Hitting for power was rare but as a young pitcher for the Boston Red Sox, ruth flashed the lumber more than a few times and when he was sold to the new york yankees in 1920, he came into his own emerging as a fearsome slugger. Fans flocked to witness his prowess at the plate. In his first season as a yankee, he hit 54 home runs. A record he broke a year later with 59 and broke againin 1927 with 60. The fact that nobody had ever hit half that many before ruth started his te made him the face of Major League Baseball and an international superstar. Under the spell of babe ruths mighty swing not only its ability to put fans in seats but also win games, the game began to transform. Teams groomed more and more power hitters and the ways of the deadball era were soon overshadowed by the glories of a home run. Era were soon overshadowed by the glories of a home run. Throughout his tenure in new york, ruth and his bat led the yankees to four world series championships. None more remarkably than in 1927, the prime of murderers row. New yorks robust lineup headed by ruth and a young lou gehrig. By the end of the 1920s, ruth had won the hearts and affection of millions. He was larger than life. Thecelebrity of the decade but the hitting machine didnt stop there. 1934 would be ruths last season in a yankees uniform. His production was in noticeable decline but his appeal was no less terrific. In 1935, he signed with the boston braves lured by the prospect of eventually taking over as manager but it wasnt to be and on may 30, 1935, ruth took the field for the last time closing out a career that bears few comparisons. A year after retiring, ruth was among the first five players inducted into the basball hall of fame. Over the next few years, he continued to pursue big League Manager positions. Nothing ever materialized but he remained adored, idolized and cherished as a national treasure. Daddy would be so mobbed. He never turned down a kid who asked for an autograph. No matter how many there were. He was gone from the game but what he left behind, the excitement of the big swing, the ball leaping off his bat, flying deep into the outfield stands that was something that would not and could not be forgotten. The sultan of swat himself, babe ruth the one and only bambino who gets a tremendous ovation from the assembled customers. Back in the home that ruth built, wearing his own number three which is now retired to baseballs hall of fame, the babe shows how it was done to the plaudits of his multitude of devoted fans. That appearance at Yankee Stadium in 1948 would be ruths last. He died of cancer two months later but in death, the great bambino would loom even larger growing into an almost mythical figure. His greatest triumphs re enacted for years to come on baseball diamonds and in backyards all over the country and his memorabilia among the most coveted possessions in the sports world. Its a testament to the giant he was immune to the passing of time. A legend that only grows stronger. When our look at the legends of baseball continues, well take you back in time to 1956 when a race to be crowned baseballs champion, resulted in a legendary yankee pitching the perfect game. Plus. We look back on the first player to join the ranks of the great babe ruth in all time home runs willie mays. Its all still ahead on through the decades. Its all still ahead on through the decades. Fios is not cable. Were wired differently. So we wired the wagners house with 100 meg internet. Which means in the time it takes mr. Wagner to pour a 20 oz. Cup of coffee, tommy can download 30 songs, and jan can upload 120 photos. 12 seconds. Thats the power of fiber optics. This is your last chance to get super fast 100meg internet, tv and phone for just 69. 99 per month online. Hurry, our best offer ever ends soon. Only from fios. Now we head back to 1994 when with a major League Strike looming, cbss bob mcnamara found the love of the game knows not age limit. Im 74, bob, but im not old. I dont intend to get old. Because ive got some age doesnt mean i cant do it. Thats it. Im ready to go. Every sunday, every summer. I had no idea that i would be bringing him to baseball games when he was 74 years old, no. Jim and his wife evelyn make the 80mile drive from home to his home field in atlanta. How are you . Good to see you. Doing great. How about you . He is a starting pitcher for the braves. Billy townsend, third base, cleanup. In atlantas senior league, where most of the players are in their 40s. Jim tyler. Im playing against guys that could be my kids, you know. And he has been a hit. Throw strikes, you know, throw strikes. You want to throw curve balls today. Yeah, i do. You think, well, were going to tear this guy up, but it doesnt happen. Hes really a pitcher. Its an art of pitching. Hes my hero. Oh, this is what we came for, man. The only time my knees dont hurt is when they give me the ball and point me to the mound and say,its your turn to pitch. and hes not much younger than my father and i cant imagine my father being out there doing it. Its amazing. He has pitched through 11 presidencies, seven decades, four wars and two knee operations. He may have grown old but he has never outgrown the game. One away. Force play. Any base. This Senior Citizen is armed with a screwball, screwing up younger batters with an arsenal of trick pitches. Look at this. This is a cut fastball. As long as i can hold my own out there, im going to stay with it. Actually, i didnt realize he was 74 until i saw you fellas here today. On this day, he goes three innings and gives up no runs. That a way to go. Cotton, my man for this pitcher who pays to play a baseball strike is unthinkable. Golly. If i made that kind of money playing ball theres no way you could get that uniform off of me. You cant get it off now. Players joke that senior baseball is a lot like little league, only slower. Good game, jim. Enjoyed it. Good game. Here they play only for tim and another chance to cheat the clock. It doesnt matter at all whether you win or lose but how long you play the game. In atlanta, bob mcnamara for eye on america. Nothing immortalizes quite like great baseball moments. All it takes is one display of greatness and for don larsen that moment came deep into the 1956 season. A flash of perfection. One the game of baseball hadnt seen before and hasnt seen since. New york city in the 1950s was baseballs promised land. Home to the giants, the dodgers and the yankees. The latter two of which were the games greatest rivals. The yankees and their winning ways. They did it again with young stars like mickey mantel at the plate and veterans like Allie Reynolds on the mound. The American League leaders kept a tight grip on their world series crown by subduing the brooklyn dodgers four games to three. In the 50s, the yankees and dodgers met each other in the world series four times in five years 1952, 53, 55, the dodgers win it two to nothing and win their first world series. And 1956. It would be the 56 series that would grab the most attention all thanks to a 27 year old pitcher. Before game five of the 1956 world series, don larsen was just another name buried beneath those of his legendary teammates like mickey mantel, yogi berra and whitey ford. Larsen was unsensational but all of that changed on october 8. With the series tied at two games a piece, larsen took the mound at Yankee Stadium. Hed hurl 97pitches against the brooklyn dodgers that day and it would be 27up 27down. A perfect game. The first and only in a world series. And don larsen is baseballs man of the hour suddenly, everyone knew the name don larsen. Don larsen, wed like to ask you the traditional question first when did you realize that you had a nohitter going . Oh, i dont know doug when i pitch a game its hard to keep your eyes off the scoreboard and i sort of noticed it around the sixth inning, i guess and as ev