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Babe Ruth: Babe Ruth League
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After the 1934 season, Ruth went on a baseball barnstorming tour in the Far East. Players such as Jimmie Foxx, Lefty Gomez, Earl Averill, Charlie Gehringer, and Lou Gehrig were among 14 players who played a series of 22 games, with many of the games played in Japan. Ruth was quite popular in Japan, as baseball had been popular in Japan for decades. Riding in a motorcade, Ruth was greeted by thousands of cheering Japanese people. The tour was considered a great success for further increasing the popularity of baseball in Japan, and in 1936 Japan organized its first professional baseball league.
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In 1914, shortly after his 19th birthday, Ruth signed a contract with the Baltimore Orioles of the International League. Because Ruth was not yet a legal adult, Orioles owner Jack Dunn became his guardian. In spring training he acquired the distinctive nickname Babe, a reference to his status as “Dunn’s baby,” and to his rookie status and his round-faced, youthful appearance. Batting for the Orioles in his first professional spring training game, Ruth hit a home run into a cornfield well beyond the right field barrier. A newspaper headline the next day read “RUTH MAKES MIGHTY CLOUT,” foretelling the future.
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Ruth developed a love for sports, particularly baseball, which served as his escape from the strict environment at St Mary’s. From an early age he showed potential as an athlete, and in his late teens he had developed into a professional candidate. His tough southpaw pitching attracted Jack Dunn, manager of the minor league Baltimore Orioles. In 1914, the Orioles signed Ruth to his first professional baseball contract. He became the team’s youngest member, and was befittingly nicknamed “Babe.”
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In 1921, Ruth improved to arguably the best year of his career, hitting 59 home runs, batting .378 and slugging .846 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. (This was not recognized at the time, as Connor's correct career total was not accurately documented until the 1970s. 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.)
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At the age of 19, Ruth was spotted by Jack Dunn, owner of the Baltimore Orioles of the International League, who signed him to his first professional contract. Ruth's parents had given custody of the boy to the Jesuits at the time he enrolled at St. Mary's, where he was supposed to remain until he turned 21. To complete the contract and remove him from the school, Dunn was forced to adopt him. This led to Ruth's being described as Dunn's "baby," which became "Babe," the nickname the stayed with him for the rest of his life.
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Ruth took another step forward in 1916, winning 23 games with a league-best 1.75 ERA. He pitched 9 shutouts that year, which is still the record for a left-hander in the American League (although it was tied by Ron Guidry in 1978). The Red Sox returned to the World Series and this time defeated the Brooklyn Robins 4 games to 1. In Game 2, Ruth pitched a remarkable 14-inning complete game, winning 2-1.
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Babe Ruth League