Babe Ruth is a name which is instantly familiar to people around the world; even those who are not baseball fans and those far too young to actually remember the Sultan of Swat know his name and are familiar with the House That Ruth Built. Among younger Major League players, one of Babe's superstitions has taken hold. As Babe said "whenever I hit a home run, I always make sure I touch all four bases". Babe Ruth was larger than life in every sense of the word and he remains deeply rooted in the popular imagination - for there may be another like him.
George Herman Ruth, Jr. was born on February 6 in 1895 in Baltimore, Maryland and was the son of Kate Schamberger-Ruth and George Senior. Kate had eight children with George Sr. but only two would survive past infancy - a daughter Mamie and The Babe. Babe didn't have the best of childhood memories, taking care of himself most of the time. At seven, Ruth was sent to St. Mary's Industrial School for Boys-more of a reformatory and orphanage than a school. Without his parents, except some weekends and holidays, Babe was what the Nuns at St. Mary's called "incorrigible."
Ruth never was one for rules and was not a good fit for the strictly ordered life offered by St. Mary's school. However, he did learn his lifelong love of the game of baseball while at the school. Jack Dunn, manager of the Baltimore Orioles (then a minor league farm team for the Boston Red Sox) was amazed by the then nineteen year old Ruth's talent and immediately signed him on. He was given the nickname of "Jack's newest babe" by teammates - a name that stuck.
After only five months, Ruth was signed to the Red Sox, where he spent six years playing the outfield and as a catcher. He rapidly gained popularity with fans for his performance on the field as well as his colorful nightlife off the diamond. Ruth played his first of many World Series games in 1916, where he set a record of fourteen innings pitching; a record which remains unbroken to this day. In World Series games alone, he achieved a record of 29 2/3 innings with no score as a pitcher - this record would stand for 43 years. He was traded to the New York Yankees in 1919; it wasn't until 2004 that the Red Sox won the World Series again, a phenomena which became known as the "Curse of the Bambino".
With Ruth on the team, the Yankees would win 4 World Series and 7 American League Pennants. Ruth hit an amazing 54 home runs in 1920 alone. Babe Ruth proved to be just as popular with the fans in New York as he had been in Boston and became a celebrity. The Yankees stadium, built in 1923 soon came to be known as "The House That Ruth Built". Fittingly enough, Ruth hit three home runs on opening day and later that year, the World Series title. Ruth would separate from his wife of 11 years, Helen Woodford in 1925, with whom he had adopted a daughter, Dorothy. It was not until Helen dies in 1929 that he would marry his companion, the model Claire Hodgson. His first at bat that year, he hit a home run out of the park, which he dedicated to Hodgson.
Throughout his 22-year career in baseball, Babe will forever be remembered for his 60 home runs in 1927, a record that stood until Roger Maris hit 61 home runs in 1961. Sports fans everywhere argue to this day who actually holds this record since Babe hit his 60 in 154 games and Maris hit his in 162 games. No one, however, can deny The Babe's impressive .690 lifetime batting percentage-something that may never be seen again. Along with The Babe, sports writers gave him nicknames like The Great Bambino and The Sultan of Swat.
Of just as much import was the home run scored by Babe Ruth in the 3rd game of the 1932 World Series against the Chicago Cubs. Legend has it that Ruth said that he would hit a home run over the center stands in memory of Dugout Dora, a stray cat Ruth would feed every time he played at Wrigley Field. Ruth pointed and hit a home run right where he had pointed; it was one of the longest home runs ever hit out of Wrigley Field.
Ruth left the Yankees in 1935 - he had wanted to be manager of the team and he decided to leave rather than stay in another capacity. He instead signed on with the Boston Braves as first base coach and player, with the promise of the manager's chair in the following year. Seeing that the Braves were unlikely to keep this promise, Ruth went out in style. In one of his final games, Ruth hit three home runs against the Pittsburgh Pirates for a career total of 714 home runs. The Babe's 2,211 RBIs, 2.28 career ERA as a left-handed pitcher and his 8,399 at-bats along with all of his many achievements have made him a player who will always be remembered as long as there is a game called baseball. - 24585
George Herman Ruth, Jr. was born on February 6 in 1895 in Baltimore, Maryland and was the son of Kate Schamberger-Ruth and George Senior. Kate had eight children with George Sr. but only two would survive past infancy - a daughter Mamie and The Babe. Babe didn't have the best of childhood memories, taking care of himself most of the time. At seven, Ruth was sent to St. Mary's Industrial School for Boys-more of a reformatory and orphanage than a school. Without his parents, except some weekends and holidays, Babe was what the Nuns at St. Mary's called "incorrigible."
Ruth never was one for rules and was not a good fit for the strictly ordered life offered by St. Mary's school. However, he did learn his lifelong love of the game of baseball while at the school. Jack Dunn, manager of the Baltimore Orioles (then a minor league farm team for the Boston Red Sox) was amazed by the then nineteen year old Ruth's talent and immediately signed him on. He was given the nickname of "Jack's newest babe" by teammates - a name that stuck.
After only five months, Ruth was signed to the Red Sox, where he spent six years playing the outfield and as a catcher. He rapidly gained popularity with fans for his performance on the field as well as his colorful nightlife off the diamond. Ruth played his first of many World Series games in 1916, where he set a record of fourteen innings pitching; a record which remains unbroken to this day. In World Series games alone, he achieved a record of 29 2/3 innings with no score as a pitcher - this record would stand for 43 years. He was traded to the New York Yankees in 1919; it wasn't until 2004 that the Red Sox won the World Series again, a phenomena which became known as the "Curse of the Bambino".
With Ruth on the team, the Yankees would win 4 World Series and 7 American League Pennants. Ruth hit an amazing 54 home runs in 1920 alone. Babe Ruth proved to be just as popular with the fans in New York as he had been in Boston and became a celebrity. The Yankees stadium, built in 1923 soon came to be known as "The House That Ruth Built". Fittingly enough, Ruth hit three home runs on opening day and later that year, the World Series title. Ruth would separate from his wife of 11 years, Helen Woodford in 1925, with whom he had adopted a daughter, Dorothy. It was not until Helen dies in 1929 that he would marry his companion, the model Claire Hodgson. His first at bat that year, he hit a home run out of the park, which he dedicated to Hodgson.
Throughout his 22-year career in baseball, Babe will forever be remembered for his 60 home runs in 1927, a record that stood until Roger Maris hit 61 home runs in 1961. Sports fans everywhere argue to this day who actually holds this record since Babe hit his 60 in 154 games and Maris hit his in 162 games. No one, however, can deny The Babe's impressive .690 lifetime batting percentage-something that may never be seen again. Along with The Babe, sports writers gave him nicknames like The Great Bambino and The Sultan of Swat.
Of just as much import was the home run scored by Babe Ruth in the 3rd game of the 1932 World Series against the Chicago Cubs. Legend has it that Ruth said that he would hit a home run over the center stands in memory of Dugout Dora, a stray cat Ruth would feed every time he played at Wrigley Field. Ruth pointed and hit a home run right where he had pointed; it was one of the longest home runs ever hit out of Wrigley Field.
Ruth left the Yankees in 1935 - he had wanted to be manager of the team and he decided to leave rather than stay in another capacity. He instead signed on with the Boston Braves as first base coach and player, with the promise of the manager's chair in the following year. Seeing that the Braves were unlikely to keep this promise, Ruth went out in style. In one of his final games, Ruth hit three home runs against the Pittsburgh Pirates for a career total of 714 home runs. The Babe's 2,211 RBIs, 2.28 career ERA as a left-handed pitcher and his 8,399 at-bats along with all of his many achievements have made him a player who will always be remembered as long as there is a game called baseball. - 24585
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