I grew up as a kid in the mid to late 60's. The "Babe" had passed away almost 20 years before, yet when I would step up to the plate to bat as a Little League ball player...What was I thinking as I got into my stance? I was thinking what many thought when coming up to bat. The announcer would say over the speakers..."Now batting....Babe Ruth!"........
Babe Ruth...to any baseball lover... is like hearing the name "Moses" from the bible...he is what the Wright Brothers are to airplane enthusiasts...he is the Henry Ford of automobiles...Babe Ruth is the very heart of baseball.
I realize time has passed since those youthful days of mine, and other players are on the minds and hearts of young boys and girls learning the "art of baseball"now....but for almost 50 years...the thought behind many a young ball player coming up through the various youth leagues were..."I want to be like Babe Ruth!"
On June 2nd, 1935, Babe Ruth officially retired...as one of the greatest players in baseball history. he had played 22 major league seasons...including 10 World Series and setting records that took decades to be broken...yet some still remain today.
Babe Ruth...his birth name being George Herman Ruth, was born on February 6th, 1895 to a family with meager earnings in Baltimore Maryland.
By the time he was 8 years of age...he was deemed "Incorrigible". Incorrigible is defined as one who's tendencies are not able to be corrected, improved, or reformed. This person is hopeless, in fact beyond hope, a "dye in the wool" never to be made clean again.
Babe was sent to Saint Mary's Industrial School for boys, an institution managed by Roman Catholic clergy, and it was here that Babe learned the "art of baseball".
When Ruth had reached the age of 19, he was signed by the Baltimore Orioles... who at that time was a minor league team owned by the major league team...the Boston Red Sox.
Babe actually began his major league career as a pitcher, a left-hander, for the parent team Boston Red Sox. Between the years of July 1914 through the season of 1919 Babe Ruth won 89 games for the Red Sox. During his 6 seasons with the Red Sox he was involved with 3 World Series and posted a 0.87 ERA in post season competition including 29 2/3 consecutive scoreless innings. After Ruth had been traded to the New York Yankees in 1920, the Boston Red Sox never returned to the World Series until 2004. This became a famous phrase known as "The curse of the Bambino".
During his tenure as a New York Yankee beginning in 1920, Babe Ruth became an outfielder instead of a pitcher. Ruth helped lead the Yankees to 7 American League pennants and 4 World Series championships. The Yankees had never been to a World Series prior to Ruth's arrival. The Yankees actually went to 7 World Series during the 12 seasons Ruth was there...winning 4. One particular series was with the Saint Louis Cardinals and Ruth attempted to steal second base...but was called out. This cost the New York Yankees the World Series that year and is the only time a World Series ended with a man caught stealing.
Oddly, Babe Ruth's 1st major league home run came against the New York Yankees, while he still played with the Boston Red Sox. It happened on May 6, 1915 at the New York Polo Grounds.
Ruth seemed to have several confrontations with others...including managers, fans, and other ballplayers on his own team. In 1922, Babe was chosen "captain of the team" only to have it taken away when he chased a heckler up in the stands. One main reason he was traded from the Boston Red Sox to the Yankees was because of ongoing financial disputes with management. In 1932, the great Lou Gehrig and Babe had a confrontation and never spoke to one another again...until 1939...7 years later.
The greatest disappointment in Ruth's baseball career came toward the end...in 1935. Babe was playing with Boston Braves at that time, and had his heart set on being a manager for the Braves the next season. After looking and weighing out the options by Braves ownership, Ruth's reputation of drinking excessively, gambling, and womanizing was too much of a risk for the Boston Braves to take, and declined from making Ruth their manager for the upcoming season. This decision seemed to break Ruth's heart.
Yet, when the "dust has settled", it is obvious Babe Ruth could be considered as the greatest baseball player in history. Babe set numerous records as a player at major league level...including the famous 714 homeruns that stood for decades until Hank Aaron topped the mark with 715 in 1974.
Ruth's mark of 60 homeruns in one season (1927) also stood for decades until another Yankee, Roger Maris, broke the mark with 61 homeruns in 1961.
Babe's slugging percentage of .690...still stands today. In 1923, the Babe flirted with a .400 average for the season finishing with a .393 average...4 hits shy of hitting the .400 mark.
In he 12 seasons he played with the New York Yankees, Ruth hit 259 homeruns in Yankee stadium. Later, Mickey Mantle ended up with 266 homeruns at Yankee stadium...in a span of 18 years.
On June 13, 1948 Babe Ruth returned to Yankee stadium for the last time, and it was here they retired his number...number "3".
Babe Ruth passed away on August 16, 1948 (the same year his number had been retired), at the age of 53. Ruth had throat cancer, and at his death his body was displayed for 2 days...at Yankee stadium. Over 100,000 people came to pay their respects to the "Sultan of the Swat"....the Babe's "final curtain call."
Some of Babe's rememberable quotes:
" Don't let the fear of striking out...hold you back." ( Babe struck out 1330 times ).
"You just can't beat the person...who never gives up."
"Every strike brings me closer..to the next homerun."
" Yesterday's homerun(s) will not win...today's game."
If you ever attend a baseball game, whether it be a youth game, minor league, or a major league game....take a moment...and listen. You may hear the wind blowing and with it a distinct sound..."The Babe........."
Babe Ruth...to any baseball lover... is like hearing the name "Moses" from the bible...he is what the Wright Brothers are to airplane enthusiasts...he is the Henry Ford of automobiles...Babe Ruth is the very heart of baseball.
I realize time has passed since those youthful days of mine, and other players are on the minds and hearts of young boys and girls learning the "art of baseball"now....but for almost 50 years...the thought behind many a young ball player coming up through the various youth leagues were..."I want to be like Babe Ruth!"
On June 2nd, 1935, Babe Ruth officially retired...as one of the greatest players in baseball history. he had played 22 major league seasons...including 10 World Series and setting records that took decades to be broken...yet some still remain today.
Babe Ruth...his birth name being George Herman Ruth, was born on February 6th, 1895 to a family with meager earnings in Baltimore Maryland.
By the time he was 8 years of age...he was deemed "Incorrigible". Incorrigible is defined as one who's tendencies are not able to be corrected, improved, or reformed. This person is hopeless, in fact beyond hope, a "dye in the wool" never to be made clean again.
Babe was sent to Saint Mary's Industrial School for boys, an institution managed by Roman Catholic clergy, and it was here that Babe learned the "art of baseball".
When Ruth had reached the age of 19, he was signed by the Baltimore Orioles... who at that time was a minor league team owned by the major league team...the Boston Red Sox.
Babe actually began his major league career as a pitcher, a left-hander, for the parent team Boston Red Sox. Between the years of July 1914 through the season of 1919 Babe Ruth won 89 games for the Red Sox. During his 6 seasons with the Red Sox he was involved with 3 World Series and posted a 0.87 ERA in post season competition including 29 2/3 consecutive scoreless innings. After Ruth had been traded to the New York Yankees in 1920, the Boston Red Sox never returned to the World Series until 2004. This became a famous phrase known as "The curse of the Bambino".
During his tenure as a New York Yankee beginning in 1920, Babe Ruth became an outfielder instead of a pitcher. Ruth helped lead the Yankees to 7 American League pennants and 4 World Series championships. The Yankees had never been to a World Series prior to Ruth's arrival. The Yankees actually went to 7 World Series during the 12 seasons Ruth was there...winning 4. One particular series was with the Saint Louis Cardinals and Ruth attempted to steal second base...but was called out. This cost the New York Yankees the World Series that year and is the only time a World Series ended with a man caught stealing.
Oddly, Babe Ruth's 1st major league home run came against the New York Yankees, while he still played with the Boston Red Sox. It happened on May 6, 1915 at the New York Polo Grounds.
Ruth seemed to have several confrontations with others...including managers, fans, and other ballplayers on his own team. In 1922, Babe was chosen "captain of the team" only to have it taken away when he chased a heckler up in the stands. One main reason he was traded from the Boston Red Sox to the Yankees was because of ongoing financial disputes with management. In 1932, the great Lou Gehrig and Babe had a confrontation and never spoke to one another again...until 1939...7 years later.
The greatest disappointment in Ruth's baseball career came toward the end...in 1935. Babe was playing with Boston Braves at that time, and had his heart set on being a manager for the Braves the next season. After looking and weighing out the options by Braves ownership, Ruth's reputation of drinking excessively, gambling, and womanizing was too much of a risk for the Boston Braves to take, and declined from making Ruth their manager for the upcoming season. This decision seemed to break Ruth's heart.
Yet, when the "dust has settled", it is obvious Babe Ruth could be considered as the greatest baseball player in history. Babe set numerous records as a player at major league level...including the famous 714 homeruns that stood for decades until Hank Aaron topped the mark with 715 in 1974.
Ruth's mark of 60 homeruns in one season (1927) also stood for decades until another Yankee, Roger Maris, broke the mark with 61 homeruns in 1961.
Babe's slugging percentage of .690...still stands today. In 1923, the Babe flirted with a .400 average for the season finishing with a .393 average...4 hits shy of hitting the .400 mark.
In he 12 seasons he played with the New York Yankees, Ruth hit 259 homeruns in Yankee stadium. Later, Mickey Mantle ended up with 266 homeruns at Yankee stadium...in a span of 18 years.
On June 13, 1948 Babe Ruth returned to Yankee stadium for the last time, and it was here they retired his number...number "3".
Babe Ruth passed away on August 16, 1948 (the same year his number had been retired), at the age of 53. Ruth had throat cancer, and at his death his body was displayed for 2 days...at Yankee stadium. Over 100,000 people came to pay their respects to the "Sultan of the Swat"....the Babe's "final curtain call."
Some of Babe's rememberable quotes:
" Don't let the fear of striking out...hold you back." ( Babe struck out 1330 times ).
"You just can't beat the person...who never gives up."
"Every strike brings me closer..to the next homerun."
" Yesterday's homerun(s) will not win...today's game."
If you ever attend a baseball game, whether it be a youth game, minor league, or a major league game....take a moment...and listen. You may hear the wind blowing and with it a distinct sound..."The Babe........."
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