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George Herman Ruth, Jr. Ruth originally broke into the major leagues with the Boston Red Sox as a starting pitcher, but after he was sold to the New York Yankees in 1919, he converted to a full-time right fielder and subsequently became one of the league's most prolific hitters. Ruth ushered in the "live-ball era", as his big swing led to escalating home run totals that not only excited fans, but helped baseball evolve from a low-scoring, speed-dominated game to a high-scoring power game. Ruth was the first player to hit 60 home runs in one season (1927), setting the season record which stood until broken by Roger Maris in 1961. Ruth's lifetime total of 714 home runs at his retirement in 1935 was a record, until first surpassed by Hank Aaron in 1974. Unlike many power hitters, Ruth also hit for average: his .342 lifetime batting is tenth highest in baseball history, and in one season (1923) he hit .393, a Yankee record. He led the league in home runs during a season twelve times, slugging percentage and OPS thirteen times each, runs scored eight times, and runs batted in (RBIs) six times. Ruth's German-American parents, Kate Schamberger-Ruth and George Herman Ruth, Sr., owned a succession of saloons and sold lightning rods. He became a father figure in Ruth's life, teaching him how to read and write, and worked with Ruth on hitting, fielding and as his skills progressed, pitching. Impressed with Ruth's pitching abilities, Engel, along with a teacher at St. Mary's, Brother Gilbert, brought Ruth to the attention of Jack Dunn, owner and manager of the then minor-league Baltimore Orioles. After watching Ruth pitch in a workout for half an hour, Dunn signed Ruth to a contract for $250 ($5,500 in current dollar terms) a month on February 14, 1914. Since Ruth was only 19 years old, Dunn had to become Ruth's legal guardian as well; The reference stayed with Ruth the rest of his life, and he was most commonly referred to as Babe Ruth from then on. in the years to come, Ruth would hit ten home runs off Johnson, including the only two Johnson would allow in 19181919. Ruth's outburst was an example of self-discipline problems that plagued Ruth throughout his career, and is regarded as the primary reason (other than financial) that then-owner Harry Frazee was willing to sell him to the Yankees two years later. Ruth threw a 10 shutout in the opener of the 1918 World Series, then won Game Four in what would be his final World Series appearance as a pitcher. Emergence as a Hitter In the years 19151917, Ruth had been used in just 44 games in which he had not pitched. Former teammate Tris Speaker speculated that the move would shorten Ruth's career, though Ruth himself wanted to hit more and pitch less. He also set his first single-season home run record that year with 29, including a game-winning homer on a September "Babe Ruth Day" promotion. Sold to New York
On December 26, 1919, Frazee sold Ruth to the New York Yankees. The deal was contingent on Ruth signing a new contract, which was quickly agreed to, and Ruth officially became property of the Yankees on December 26. In the January 6, 1920 edition of The Boston Globe, Frazee described the transaction:
The Yankee Years 19201925 After moving to the Yankees, Ruth's transition from a pitcher to a power-hitting outfielder became complete. In his fifteen year Yankee career, consisting of over 2,000 games, Ruth re-wrote the record books in terms of his hitting achievements, while making only five widely-scattered token appearances on the mound, winning all of them. Aside from the Yankees, only the Philadelphia Phillies managed to hit more home runs as a team than Ruth did as an individual, slugging 64 in hitter-friendly Baker Bowl. In 1921, Ruth improved to arguably the best year of his career, hitting 59 home runs, batting .378 and slugging .846 (the highest with 500+ at-bats in an MLB season) while leading the Yankees to their first league championship. On July 18, 1921, Babe Ruth hit career home run #139, breaking Roger Connor's record of 138 in just the eighth year of his career. Even if the record had been celebrated, it would have been on an earlier date, as Connor's total was at one time thought to be only 131.) Ruth's name quickly became synonymous with the home run, as he led the transformation of baseball strategy from the "inside game" to the "power game", and because of the style and manner in which he hit them. His ability to drive a significant number of his home runs in the 450500foot range and beyond resulted in the lasting adjective "Ruthian", to describe any long home run hit by any player. Bill Jenkinson's 2006 book, The Year Babe Ruth Hit 104 Home Runs, attempts to examine each of Ruth's 714 career home runs, plus several hundred long inside-the-park drives and "fair-foul" balls. The author concluded that Ruth would have been credited with 104 home runs in 1921, if modern rules and field dimensions were in place. Still, Ruth set major league records in total bases (457), extra base hits (119) and times on base (379), all of which stand to this day. The Yankees had high expectations when they met the New York Giants in the 1921 World Series, and the Yankees won the first two games with Ruth in the lineup. Ruth hit .316, drove in five runs and hit his first World Series home run. (Although the Yankees won the fifth game, Ruth wrenched his knee and did not return to the Series until the eighth game.) Ruth's appearance in the 1921 World Series also led to a problem and triggered another disciplinary action. In his shortened season, Ruth appeared in 110 games, batted .315, with 35 home runs and drove in 99 runs, but compared to his previous two dominating seasons, the 1922 season was a disappointment for Ruth. Despite Ruth's off-year, Yankees managed to win the pennant to face the New York Giants for the second straight year in the World Series. In the series, Giants manager John McGraw instructed his pitchers to throw Ruth nothing but curveballs, and Ruth never adjusted. Ruth had just two hits in seventeen at-bats, and the Yankees lost to the Giants for the second straight year by 40 (with one tie game). Ruth hit the stadium's first home run on the way to a Yankees victory over the Red Sox. Ruth finished the 1923 season with a career-high .393 batting average and major-league leading 41 home runs. He batted .368, walked eight times, scored eight runs, hit three home runs and slugged 1.000 during the series, as the Yankees won their first World Series title, four games to two. During spring training in 1925 Ruth's ailment was dubbed "the bellyache heard round the world," when one writer wrote that Ruth's illness was caused by binging on hot dogs and soda pop before a game. Playing just 98 games, Ruth had what would be his worst season as a Yankee as he finished the season with a .290 average and 25 home runs. 19261928 Babe Ruth performed at a much higher level during 1926, batting .372 with 47 home runs and 146 RBIs. The 1926 series was also known for Ruth's promise to Johnny Sylvester, a seriously-ill 11-year old, that he would hit a home run on his behalf. With the race long since decided, the nation's attention turned to Ruth's pursuit of his own home run mark of 59. Ruth was also being challenged for his slugger's crown by teammate Lou Gehrig, who nudged ahead of Ruth's total in midseason, prompting the New York World-Telegram to anoint Gehrig the favorite. But Ruth caught Gehrig (who would finish with 47), and then had a remarkable last leg of the season, hitting 17 home runs in September. In addition to his career-high 60 home runs, Ruth batted .356, drove in 164 runs and slugged .772. But Ruth was hobbled by a bad ankle the latter part of the season, and he hit just twelve home runs in the last two months of the regular season. Ruth batted .625 (the second highest average in World Series history), including another three-home run game (in game 4), Gehrig batted .545, and the Yankees demolished the Cardinals in four games. Although the Yankees had slipped, Ruth led or tied for the league lead in home runs each year during 19291931. (Ruth had supported Al Smith in the 1928 Presidential election, and snubbed an appearance with president Hoover.) Three years later, Ruth would make a public appearance with the ex-President at a Stanford USC football game. In the 1932 season, the Yankees went 10747 and won the pennant under manager Joe McCarthy, as Ruth hit .341, with 41 home runs and 137 RBIs. During Game 3 of the series, after having already homered, Ruth hit what has now become known as Babe Ruth's Called Shot. During the at-bat, Ruth supposedly gestured to the deepest part of the park in center-field, predicting a home run. The center field corner was 440feet away, and at age 37, Ruth had hit a straightaway center home run that was perhaps a 490foot blow. Ruth remained productive in 1933, as he batted .301, with 34 home runs, 103 RBIs, and a league-leading 114 walks. His two-run home run helped the AL to a 42 victory over the NL, and Ruth made a fine catch in the game. Film footage of his All-Star game home run revealed the 38-year-old Ruth had become noticeably overweight. In 1934, Babe Ruth recorded a .288 average, 22 home runs, and made the All-Star team for the second consecutive year. During the game, Ruth was the first of five consecutive strikeout victims (all of whom were future Hall of Fame players) of Giants pitcher Carl Hubbell, perhaps the most famous pitching feat in All-Star game history. By this time, Ruth had reached a personal milestone of 700 home runs and was about ready to retire. A's owner/manager Connie Mack gave some thought to stepping down as manager in favor of Ruth, but later dropped the idea, saying that Ruth's wife would be running the team in a month if Ruth ever took over. In a long letter to Ruth a few days before the press conference, Fuchs promised Ruth a share in the Braves' profits, with the possibility of becoming co-owner of the team. Before an opening-day crowd of over 25,000, Ruth accounted for all of the Braves' runs in a 42 defeat of the New York Giants. The Braves had long played second fiddle to the Red Sox in Boston, but Ruth's arrival spiked interest in the Braves to levels not seen since their stunning win in the 1914 World Series. Ruth was also miffed that McKechnie ignored most of his managerial advice (McKechnie later said that Ruth's presence made enforcing discipline nearly impossible). On May 25, at Forbes Field in Pittsburgh, Ruth went 4-for-4, drove in 6 runs and hit 3 home runs in an 117 loss to the Pirates. Five days later, in Philadelphia, Ruth played in his last Major League game. Ruth himself had to get authorities to issue a new death certificate in her legal name, Margaret Helen Woodford Ruth. Baby Ruth candy bar controversy For decades, the Baby Ruth candy bar was believed to be named after Babe Ruth and some sports marketing practitioners used this example of one of the first forms of sports marketing. However, while the name of the candy bar sounds nearly identical to the Babe's name, the Curtiss Candy Company has steadfastly claimed that Baby Ruth was named after President Grover Cleveland's daughter, Ruth Cleveland. The New York Times supports the evidence of the ambush marketing campaign when it wrote "For 85 years, Babe Ruth, the slugger, and Baby Ruth, the candy bar, have lived parallel lives in which it has been widely assumed that the latter was named for the former. The confection's creator, the Curtiss Candy Company, never admitted to what looks like an obvious connection especially since Ruth hit 54 home runs the year before the first Baby Ruth was devoured. Thus, in 1995, a company representing the Ruth estate brought the Baby Ruth candy bar into sponsorship officialdom when it licensed the Babe's name and likeness for use in a Baby Ruth marketing campaign. On page 34 of the spring, 2007, edition of the Chicago Cubs game program, there is a full-page ad showing a partially-unwrapped Baby Ruth in front of the Wrigley ivy, with the caption, "The official candy bar of Major League Baseball, and proud sponsor of the Chicago Cubs." Continuing the baseball-oriented theme, during the summer and post-season of the 2007 season, a TV ad for the candy bar showed an entire stadium (played by Dodger Stadium) filled with people munching Baby Ruths, and thus having to hum rather than singing along with "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" during the seventh-inning stretch. Despite his health problems, Ruth was able to attend "Babe Ruth Day". Although lacking a specific memorable comment like Gehrig's "Luckiest man" speech, Ruth spoke from the heart, of his enthusiasm for the game of baseball and in support of the youth playing the game. (Babe Ruth speaking at Yankee Stadium) Later, Ruth started the Babe Ruth Foundation, a charity for disadvantaged children. On July 26, 1948, Ruth attended the premiere of the film The Babe Ruth Story, a biopic about his own life. As a sidelight to his prominent role in changing the game to the power game, the frequency and popularity of Ruth's home runs eventually led to a rule change pertaining to those hit in sudden-death mode (bottom of the ninth or later inning). Several players lost home runs that way, including Ruth, whose career total would have been changed to 715 if historians during the 1960s had been successful in pursuing this matter. Another rules change that affected Ruth was the method used by umpires to judge potential home runs when the batted ball left the field near a foul pole. Jenkinson's book (p.374375) lists 78 foul balls near the foul pole in Ruth's career, claiming that at least 50 of them were likely to have been home runs under the modern rule. The most valuable memorabilia item relating to Ruth was his 1923 bat which he used to hit the first home run at Yankee Stadium on April 18, 1923. Ruth's heavy Louisville Slugger solid ash wood bat sold for $1.26million at a Sotheby's auction in December 2004, making it the third most valuable baseball memorabilia item, behind Mark McGwire's 70th home run ball and the famous 1909 Honus Wagner baseball card.
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"I should have preferred to take players in exchange for Ruth, but no club could have given me the equivalent in men without wrecking itself, and so the deal had to be made on a cash basis.
"The short right field wall at the Polo Grounds should prove an easy target for Ruth next season and, playing seventy-seven games at home, it would not be surprising if Ruth surpassed his home run record of twenty-nine circuit clouts next Summer."
The 1927 New York Yankees, one of the greatest baseball teams of all-time (Ruth is on top row, fifth from the left.)
Ruth's widow, Claire, at the unveiling of a memorial plaque in Baltimore's old Memorial Stadium (1955)
Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference, orFangraphs, orThe Baseball Cube, orBaseball-Reference (Minors)
American League Home Run Champion 19181921 (1918 with Tilly Walker) 19231924 19261931 (1931 with Lou Gehrig)
Nolan Ryan Sandy Koufax Cy Young Roger Clemens Bob Gibson Walter Johnson Warren Spahn Christy Mathewson Lefty Grove
Johnny Bench Yogi Berra Lou Gehrig Mark McGwire Jackie Robinson Rogers Hornsby Mike Schmidt Brooks Robinson Cal Ripken, Jr. Ernie Banks Honus Wagner
Babe Ruth Hank Aaron Ted Williams Willie Mays Joe DiMaggio Mickey Mantle Ty Cobb Ken Griffey, Jr. Pete Rose Stan Musial
LouGehrig RogersHornsby HonusWagner MikeSchmidt (Infielders) JohnnyBench (Catcher) Paul Molitor (Designated hitter) TedWilliams WillieMays BabeRuth (Outfielders) WalterJohnson SandyKoufax Dennis Eckersley (Pitchers) CaseyStengel (Manager)
History Records Players Managers Coaches Captains Broadcasters Seasons Opening Day starters First-round draft picks Logos and uniforms
Huntington Avenue Grounds Fenway Park Spring Training: McKechnie Field Bader Field Payne Park Scottsdale Stadium Chain of Lakes Park City of Palms Park
Red Sox Nation Royal Rooters Curse of the Bambino Green Monster Pesky's Pole Wally the Green Monster The Impossible Dream Fisk Waves it Fair Bucky Dent's Home Run Buckner's Blunder Game 6 The Bloody Sock "Idiots" Break the Curse Manny being Manny "Tessie" "Dirty Water" "Sweet Caroline" "I'm Shipping Up to Boston" Good Will Hunting Fever Pitch The Jimmy Fund Yawkey Way Golden Outfield Dan Shaughnessy
Owners: John W. 1916: Babe Ruth | 1917: Babe Ruth | 1918: Babe Ruth | 2009: Josh Beckett
Formerly the Baltimore Orioles and the New York Highlanders Based in the Bronx, New York City, New York
History Seasons Records No-hitters Players Managers Coaches Owners and executives Broadcasters Opening Day starting pitchers Opening Day starting lineups Team captains First-round picks YES Network
Oriole Park Hilltop Park Polo Grounds Yankee Stadium (opened 1923) Shea Stadium Yankee Stadium (opened 2009) Spring Training: Barrs Field Bader Field Al Lang Stadium Fort Lauderdale Stadium George M. Steinbrenner Field
Curse of the Bambino Murderers' Row Babe Ruth's called shot Lou Gehrig's "Luckiest Man" speech M&M Boys Chris Chambliss' walk-off home run Reggie Jackson/"Mr. October" Bucky "Bleeping" Dent Pine Tar Incident Jeffrey Maier The Flip Play Derek Jeter/"Mr. November" Aaron Boone's walk-off home run
Monument Park Old-Timers' Day Bleacher Creatures Yankees Universe George Steinbrenner Bob Sheppard Eddie Layton Mel Allen Logos, uniforms and dress code "Holy Cow!" Robert Merrill "Yankees win! Ronan Tynan "Here Come the Yankees" "Haya Doin'?" "New York, New York" "God Bless America" The Pride of the Yankees The Babe Ruth Story Damn Yankees Safe at Home! 61* The Bronx Is Burning Dandy Freddy Sez George Costanza
Mel Allen Ed Barrow Yogi Berra Bill Dickey Joe DiMaggio Whitey Ford Lou Gehrig Lefty Gomez Ron Guidry Elston Howard Miller Huggins Reggie Jackson Mickey Mantle Roger Maris Billy Martin Don Mattingly Joe McCarthy Thurman Munson Allie Reynolds Phil Rizzuto Red Ruffing Jacob Ruppert Babe Ruth Bob Sheppard Casey Stengel
Owners: Yankee Global Enterprises LLC (Hal Steinbrenner Hank Steinbrenner) General Manager: Brian Cashman Manager: Joe Girardi
1923 1927 1928 1932 1936 1937 1938 1939 1941 1943 1947 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1956 1958 1961 1962 1977 1978 1996 1998 1999 2000 2009
American League: 1921 1922 1923 1926 1927 1928 1932 1936 1937 1938 1939 1941 1942 1943 1947 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1955 1956 1957 1958 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1976 1977 1978 1981 1996 1998 1999 2000 2001 2003 2009
Eastern Division: 1976 1977 1978 1980 1981 1996 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2009 | Wild Card: 1995 1997 2007
AAA: Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees | A: Tampa Yankees Charleston RiverDogs Staten Island Yankees | Rookie: Gulf Coast League Yankees DSL Yankees1 DSL Yankees2
#1 Billy Martin #3 Babe Ruth #4 Lou Gehrig #5 Joe DiMaggio #7 Mickey Mantle #8 Bill Dickey #8 Yogi Berra #9 Roger Maris #10 Phil Rizzuto #15 Thurman Munson #16 Whitey Ford #23 Don Mattingly #32 Elston Howard #37 Casey Stengel #44 Reggie Jackson #49 Ron Guidry
Hal Chase Roger Peckinpaugh Babe Ruth Everett Scott Lou Gehrig Thurman Munson Graig Nettles Willie Randolph Ron Guidry* Don Mattingly Derek Jeter
Harry Frazee's Folly Bucky Dent's Home Run Aaron Boone's Home Run The Bloody Sock
Harry Frazee Babe Ruth Carlton Fisk Bill Lee Thurman Munson Jorge Posada Bucky Dent Roger Clemens Wade Boggs Aaron Boone Pedro Martnez Alex Rodriguez Mark Teixeira David Ortiz Mariano Rivera Joe Torre Derek Jeter Curt Schilling Manny Ramirez Johnny Damon Kevin Youkilis Jonathan Papelbon Brian Cashman Theo Epstein George Steinbrenner Hank Steinbrenner Hal Steinbrenner John W. Henry Larry Lucchino Terry Francona
Barry Bonds Hank Aaron Babe Ruth Willie Mays Ken Griffey, Jr. Sammy Sosa Alex Rodriguez Frank Robinson Mark McGwire Jim Thome Harmon Killebrew Rafael Palmeiro Reggie Jackson Manny Ramirez Mike Schmidt Mickey Mantle Jimmie Foxx Willie McCovey Frank Thomas Ted Williams Ernie Banks Eddie Mathews Mel Ott Gary Sheffield Eddie Murray Italics denotes active player
Ty Cobb (98.23%) Walter Johnson (83.63%) Christy Mathewson (90.71%) Babe Ruth (95.13%) Honus Wagner (95.13%)
Aaron Ashburn Averill Bell Brock Brown Burkett Carey Charleston Clarke Clemente Cobb Combs Crawford Cuyler Dawson Delahanty DiMaggio Doby Duffy Flick Goslin Gwynn Hafey Hamilton Heilmann Henderson Hill Hooper Irvin Jackson Kaline Keeler Kelley Kelly Kiner Klein Mantle Manush Mays McCarthy Medwick Musial O'Rourke Ott Puckett J. Rice S. Rice Robinson Roush Ruth Simmons Slaughter Snider Speaker Stargell Stearnes Thompson Torriente L. Waner P. Waner Wheat B. Williams T. Williams Wilson Winfield Yastrzemski Youngs
Yogi Berra Jack Chesbro Earle Combs Joe DiMaggio Bill Dickey Whitey Ford Lou Gehrig Lefty Gomez Joe Gordon Goose Gossage Waite Hoyt Reggie Jackson Tony Lazzeri Mickey Mantle Herb Pennock Phil Rizzuto Red Ruffing Babe Ruth
Home Run Baker Wade Boggs Roger Bresnahan Frank Chance Stan Coveleski Clark Griffith Burleigh Grimes Bucky Harris Rickey Henderson Catfish Hunter Willie Keeler Joe McGinnity John McGraw Johnny Mize Phil Niekro Gaylord Perry Branch Rickey Wilbert Robinson Joe Sewell Enos Slaughter Dazzy Vance Paul Waner Dave Winfield
Mel Allen Red Barber Buck Canel Jerry Coleman Joe Garagiola Curt Gowdy Russ Hodges