Not all images were able to load for printing. Please close the print window and try again. The Oris Lou Gehrig Limited Edition, a Baseball-Themed Big Crown Pointer Date
Two icons reunited for a good cause.
The Oris Big Crown started life in 1938 as a pilot’s watch with a large crown that could be operated while wearing gloves and a distinctive, red-tipped pointer hand to indicate the date on the dial’s perimeter. One of the brand’s most iconic models, the classic 40mm Big Crown Pointer Date returns today as a limited edition of 2,130 pieces, celebrating the legacy of baseball icon Lou Gehrig and raising funds for the Lou and Eleanor Gehrig Family Foundation. This new version follows two previous models that were already designed around baseball and linked to charitable causes, the Roberto Clemente and Hank Aaron limited editions.
Nicknamed the “Iron Horse,” Lou Gehrig played a record 2,130 consecutive games across 15 seasons for the New York Yankees. Wildly popular in his day, Lou Gehrig (1903-1941) would also become the face of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) after his 1939 farewell speech to the crowds. Following his tragic death on 2 June 1941, the New York Yankees, Major League Baseball and Gehrig’s family have raised millions for ALS research. Oris joins the cause with yet another baseball-themed special edition marked by details that allude to the first baseman’s illustrious career.
Just like the Roberto Clemente and Hank Aaron limited editions, the Oris Lou Gehrig Limited Edition is based on the Big Crown Pointer Date. The 40mm steel case, with a thickness of 12.2mm and 50m water-resistance, features a distinctive oversized crown and fluted bezel, and is decorated with alternating brushed and polished finishes. However, in honour of Lou Gehrig, the sealed and screwed caseback is engraved with an image of the baseball player delivering his epic farewell speech in 1939, and the limited edition of 2,130 references his record-setting streak of games.
The dial echoes the grey, white and navy blue colours of the Yankees’ uniform. For one, the vertically brushed dial background evokes the grey colour of the uniform and Gehrig’s nickname, the Iron Horse. The hour numerals and indices are outlined in blue with white Super-LumiNova, and the blue minutes track also features blue-framed lumed markers. The tip of the pointer date hand is blue, as is the number 4 on the black peripheral date track, in honour of Gehrig’s number 4 retired by the Yankees in 1940.
The vintage cathedral-style hour and minute hands, indices and markers are all treated with green-emission SLN. The dial is protected by a domed sapphire crystal.
Like the stitching of a baseball glove, the brown suede leather strap is double-stitched, and the additional NATO strap features Yankees’ stripes, both with steel buckles. The watch is powered by the Oris calibre 754, an automatic movement with a Sellita SW 200-1 base, modified internally for the date complication. It has a power reserve of 41 hours and a frequency of 28,800vph.
Limited to 2,130 pieces, the watch retails for CHF 2,400. More information at oris.ch.
