Timeline - 1930s
June 3, 1932: Lou Gehrig becomes the first player to hit four home runs in a single game in the Yankees' 20-13 win at Philadelphia. He remains the only Yankee to hit four home runs in one game.
July 14, 1934: Babe Ruth hits the 700th home run of his career off Tommy Bridges in the second inning of a 4-2 Yankees' win at Detroit's Navin Field.
Nov. 21, 1934: The Yankees purchase Joe DiMaggio from the San Francisco Seals of the Pacific Coast League for $50,000.
Apr. 20, 1937: The Yankees' 15th season at Yankee Stadium opens with the right-field stands enlarged to three decks. The wooden bleachers are replaced by a concrete structure with the distance to center field dropping from 490 to 461 feet.
May 30, 1938: A franchise-record crowd of 81,841 attends a doubleheader sweep of the Boston Red Sox.
May 2, 1939: Lou Gehrig's playing streak of 2,130 consecutive games ends when he does not make an appearance in a 22-2 Yankees' win at Detroit. Babe Dahlgren plays first base for the Yankees and contributes a double and a home run.
July 4, 1939: "Lou Gehrig Appreciation Day" is held at Yankee Stadium. His uniform number (4) is the first to be retired in Major League Baseball and Gehrig makes his famous "Today I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth" speech.