Joe DiMaggio Breaks Willie Keeler's All-Time Hitting Streak Record

On July 2, 1941, Joe DiMaggio crushed a two-run home run over the left field fence at Yankee Stadium off Boston Red Sox pitcher Dick Newsome, extending his consecutive-game hitting streak to 45 games and breaking Willie Keeler's all-time record of 44 that had stood since 1897. A Wednesday crowd of 8,682 watched the 26-year-old center fielder surpass a mark that many had considered permanent.

DiMaggio had tied Keeler's record the day before with a single. The pressure of chasing the record had built for weeks, with every at-bat drawing national attention and daily updates in newspapers across the country. When the home run cleared the fence in the fifth inning, the Yankee Stadium crowd erupted, and DiMaggio circled the bases with his trademark effortless stride.

The Yankees won the game 8-4, part of a dominant stretch that would carry them to the American League pennant. DiMaggio's streak had begun quietly on May 15 with a single against the Chicago White Sox. By mid-June, the streak had become the story of the baseball season, and by late June it had become the biggest story in American sports.

DiMaggio did not stop at 45. He extended the streak 11 more games, reaching 50 on July 11 with a single off St. Louis Browns pitcher Bob Harris and pushing the final mark to 56 games before Cleveland third baseman Ken Keltner and shortstop Lou Boudreau combined to stop him on July 17. During the 56-game streak, DiMaggio hit .408 with 15 home runs, 16 doubles, and 55 RBI. He struck out only seven times.

The record has stood for more than eight decades. Pete Rose came closest with a 44-game streak in 1978, matching Keeler but falling 12 games short of DiMaggio. The 56-game hitting streak remains one of the most unassailable records in professional sports.