Which player lost his starting position to Lou Gehrig?

Answer 1

Wally Pipp, a first baseman with the Tigers, Yankees, and Reds between 1913-1928, was the player Lou Gehrig replaced at first base. Legend had it that Pipp reported to the ballpark on June 2, 1925 with a headache and the Yankees manager, Miller Huggins, told him to take two aspirin and get some rest. Gehrig replaced Pipp that day and never relinquished the position. A great story, maybe, but not exactly accurate. The Yankees were playing poorly at the start of the 1925 season. There was dissention among the players. While Pipp was not part of the dissention his play was poor. He was hitting just .244 and for the three weeks prior to June 2 was batting .181. So manager Huggins decided to shake things up by benching Pipp for Gehrig. Huggins also benched catcher Wally Schang and second baseman Aaron Ward in hopes of setting a fire under the team. While the Yankees played better, they wound up missing the World Series for the second straight season as the Washington Nationals won the AL pennant. Pipp had been the Yankees first baseman for ten years and while he certainly was unhappy to lose his starting job, he worked with Gehrig to make him a better ball player. He was sold to the Cincinnati Reds prior to the 1926 season for $7,500.