Coming off of two hit-less outings, Joe DiMaggio began what would be a 56 game hitting streak. The game came against the Chicago White Sox when DiMaggio drove in the only run the Yankees would score all game on their way to a 13-1 loss. This dropped the Yankees to 14-15 and it took DiMaggio’s hitting streak to turn their season around. DiMaggio faced 4 future Hall of Fame pitchers, went through the all-star break and dealt with the death of former teammate, Lou Gehrig all throughout his impressive streak. His streak of 56 games with a hit crushed the previous record of 45 games, set by Willie Keeler. After going 0/3 with a walk, DiMaggio started a new hitting streak the very next game. This streak would last for 16 games, giving him a hit in 72 out of the last 73 games.

During the streak, DiMaggio’s stat-line was a .408 batting average, 15 home runs, 55 RBIs and struck out just 7 times in 223 at-bats. He had five games with 3 hits and four games with 4 hits. DiMaggio raised his season’s batting average from .306 to .375 during the streak, finishing the season with a .357 average and 30 home runs while leading the league RBIs and winning MVP. This propelled the Yankees from 4th to 1st in their division and they went on to win the World Series over the Dodgers.