This article is about the baseball player. For other uses, see Babe Ruth (disambiguation).
Baseball player
Babe Ruth
Ruth in 1920
Outfielder / Pitcher
Born:(1895-02-06)February 6, 1895 Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.
Died: August 16, 1948(1948-08-16) (aged 53) New York City, U.S.
Batted: Left
Threw: Left
MLB debut
July 11, 1914, for the Boston Red Sox
Last MLB appearance
May 30, 1935, for the Boston Braves
MLB statistics
Batting average
.342
Hits
2,873
Home runs
714
Runs batted in
2,214
Win–loss record
94–46
Earned run average
2.28
Strikeouts
488
Teams
As player
Boston Red Sox (1914–1919)
New York Yankees (1920–1934)
Boston Braves (1935)
As coach
Brooklyn Dodgers (1938)
Career highlights and awards
2× All-Star (1933, 1934)
7× World Series champion (1915, 1916, 1918, 1923, 1927, 1928, 1932)
AL MVP (1923)
AL batting champion (1924)
12× AL home run leader (1918–1921, 1923, 1924, 1926–1931)
5× AL RBI leader (1919–1921, 1923, 1926)
AL ERA leader (1916)
Pitched a combined no-hitter on June 23, 1917
New York Yankees No. 3 retired
Monument Park honoree
Boston Red Sox Hall of Fame
Major League Baseball All-Century Team
Major League Baseball All-Time Team
Other career achievements and records
Member of the National
Baseball Hall of Fame
Induction
1936
Vote
95.1% (first ballot)
George Herman "Babe" Ruth (February 6, 1895 – August 16, 1948) was an American professional baseball player whose career in Major League Baseball (MLB) spanned 22 seasons, from 1914 through 1935. Nicknamed "the Bambino" and "the Sultan of Swat", he began his MLB career as a star left-handed pitcher for the Boston Red Sox, but achieved his greatest fame as a slugging outfielder for the New York Yankees. Ruth is regarded as one of the greatest sports heroes in American culture and is considered by many to be the greatest baseball player of all time. In 1936, Ruth was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame as one of its "first five" inaugural members.
At age seven, Ruth was sent to St. Mary's Industrial School for Boys, a reformatory where he was mentored by Brother Matthias Boutlier of the Xaverian Brothers, the school's disciplinarian and a capable baseball player. In 1914, Ruth was signed to play Minor League baseball for the Baltimore Orioles but was soon sold to the Red Sox. By 1916, he had built a reputation as an outstanding pitcher who sometimes hit long home runs, a feat unusual for any player in the dead-ball era. Although Ruth twice won 23 games in a season as a pitcher and was a member of three World Series championship teams with the Red Sox, he wanted to play every day and was allowed to convert to an outfielder. With regular playing time, he broke the MLB single-season home run record in 1919 with 29.
After that season, Red Sox owner Harry Frazee sold Ruth to the Yankees amid controversy. The trade fueled Boston's subsequent 86-year championship drought and popularized the "Curse of the Bambino" superstition. In his 15 years with the Yankees, Ruth helped the team win seven American League (AL) pennants and four World Series championships. His big swing led to escalating home run totals that not only drew fans to the ballpark and boosted the sport's popularity but also helped usher in baseball's live-ball era, which evolved from a low-scoring game of strategy to a sport where the home run was a major factor. As part of the Yankees' vaunted "Murderers' Row" lineup of 1927, Ruth hit 60 home runs, which extended his own MLB single-season record by a single home run. Ruth's last season with the Yankees was 1934; he retired from the game the following year, after a short stint with the Boston Braves. In his career, he led the American League in home runs twelve times.
During Ruth's career, he was the target of intense press and public attention for his baseball exploits and off-field penchants for drinking and womanizing. After his retirement as a player, he was denied the opportunity to manage a major league club, most likely because of poor behavior during parts of his playing career. In his final years, Ruth made many public appearances, especially in support of American efforts in World War II. In 1946, he became ill with nasopharyngeal cancer and died from the disease two years later. Ruth remains a major figure in American culture.
George Herman "Babe" Ruth (February 6, 1895 – August 16, 1948) was an American professional baseball player whose career in Major League Baseball (MLB)...
BabeRuth died on August 16, 1948, from a type of throat cancer. He underwent hormone therapy, and surgery in an attempt to treat his cancer. He was also...
The Babe is a 1992 American biographical sports drama film about the life of famed baseball player BabeRuth, who is portrayed by John Goodman. Directed...
The BabeRuth Award is given annually to the Major League Baseball (MLB) player with the best performance in the postseason. The award, created in honor...
The BabeRuth League is an international youth baseball and softball league based in Hamilton, New Jersey, US named after George Herman "Babe" Ruth. The...
The BabeRuth Story is a 1948 American biographical film about professional baseball player BabeRuth (1895–1948), who achieved fame as a slugging outfielder...
BabeRuth Bows Out, also known as The Babe Bows Out, is a 1948 photograph of Major League Baseball player BabeRuth taken by New York Herald Tribune photographer...
Boston Red Sox between 1918 and 2004. The superstition was named after BabeRuth, colloquially known as "The Bambino", who played for the Red Sox until...
62528 The BabeRuth Birthplace and Museum is a row house located at 216 Emory Street, in Baltimore, Maryland, where baseball legend BabeRuth was born...
Ruth Cleveland (October 3, 1891 – January 7, 1904), popularly known as Baby Ruth or BabeRuth, was the eldest of five children born to United States President...
Dorothy Helen Ruth Pirone (June 7, 1921 – May 18, 1989) was the biological daughter of the US baseball player BabeRuth and his mistress Juanita Jennings...
baseball player BabeRuth, the Curtiss Candy Company traditionally claimed that it was named after President Grover Cleveland's daughter, Ruth Cleveland. The...
for a promise made to him by BabeRuth during the 1926 World Series. Sylvester was seriously ill and hospitalized. Ruth said he would hit a home run on...
wife of BabeRuth. Hodgson's first husband, Frank Hodgson, died February 16, 1921, leaving her with a daughter, Julia. She met Ruth in 1923. Ruth was still...
BabeRuth League, pitching the “Eat. Spit. Be Happy!”(slogan) message to youth baseball and softball players ages 5 to 18 nationwide. The BabeRuth League...
statistics, records, and other achievements pertaining to BabeRuth. At the time in which BabeRuth played, some of baseball's modern awards did not exist...
exhibition game at Korakuen Stadium on 2 November 1974, after Aaron eclipsed BabeRuth's home run record. By that time, Oh was running away with the Japanese...
April 18, 1923, the same day Yankee Stadium opened for the first time and BabeRuth inaugurated the new stadium with a home run against the Boston Red Sox...
New York Yankees to acquire BabeRuth, who had, coincidentally, started his career with the Boston Red Sox. Fuchs named Ruth vice president and assistant...
baseball history, with some comparing it favorably to the early career of BabeRuth. Considered early on as an elite two-way player, Ohtani was the first...
destroyed in the 1921 Tulsa Race Riot.) The notable historic ball player BabeRuth is featured as a recurring character in The Given Day, along with other...
nation's attention turned to BabeRuth's pursuit of his own home run mark of 59, set in 1921. Early in the season, Ruth expressed doubts about his chances:...
records. He broke the long-standing MLB record for career home runs held by BabeRuth and remained the career leader for 33 years, until Barry Bonds surpassed...
including many of the most iconic figures in the sport's history, such as BabeRuth, Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio, Mickey Mantle, Yogi Berra, Whitey Ford, Reggie...
Global Information
