The Selling of the Babe (42 page)

Babe Ruth, 1921. In New York, Ruth became baseball's most-beloved figure.
George Grantham Bain Collection, Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division

What was the difference between Boston and New York for Ruth? In New York, he became “the Babe,” the man everyone, even President Warren G. Harding, wanted to meet.
Leslie Jones Collection. Courtesy of the Trustees of the Boston Public Library

 

Notes

Please note that some of the links referenced in this work are no longer active.

Introduction

There are thousands upon thousands of words credited to Ruth's lips: A particularly good discussion of Ruth and the role his ghostwriters played in his life appears in Kal Wagenheim,
Babe Ruth: His Life and Legend
(New York: Henry Holt, 1974).

Prologue: September 11, 1918

In the eighth inning of the sixth and final game: Composite details of Game 6 of the 1918 World Series were re-created from several sources, namely game reports dated September 12, 1918, from the following newspapers:
Boston Globe, Boston Post, Boston Herald and Journal, Boston American, New York Times,
and
Chicago Tribune
. Also useful were the author's previous accounts of the 1918 World Series: “1918,”
Boston Magazine
, October 1987, pp. 141–47; and “The Last Champions,”
New England Sport
, Summer 1993, pp. 23–31; and in Richard Johnson and Glenn Stout,
Red Sox Century
(Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1999), pp. 133–34.

Boston's left fielder: George Whiteman's role in the series is discussed in detail in F. C. Lane, “Hero of the Series,”
Baseball Magazine
, November 1918.

1. George Herman Ruth

“I saw a man”: Harry Hooper as quoted by Lawrence Ritter in his oral history,
The Glory of Their Times
(New York: Macmillan, 1984), p. 137.

When George Ruth arrived: As explained in the head notes to the Bibliography, in addition to newspaper accounts, three books were of particular help in re-creating the events of 1918 in this and subsequent chapters: Allan Wood's
1918: Babe Ruth and the World Champion Boston Red Sox
(New York: Writers Club, 2000); Kerry Keene, Ray Sinibaldi, and David Hickey's
The Babe in Red Stockings
(Champaign, Ill.: Sagamore, 1997); and Ty Waterman and Mel Springer's
The Year the Red Sox Won the World Series
(Boston: Northeastern University Press, 1999).

spring training in Hot Springs, Arkansas: Boston's trip to Hot Springs is described from the following: “Red Sox Take Ozark Trail Today,”
Boston Daily Globe
, March 9, 1918; and “Eibel Fails to Join Red Sox in Albany,”
Boston Daily Globe
, March 10, 1918. Other events of spring training are primarily built from press reports in the
Boston Globe
and
Boston Post
, March 1918. Useful background on Hot Springs as a spring training site can be found in Tim Gay,
Tris Speaker
(Guilford, Conn.: Lyons/University of Nebraska, 2007); Paul Zingg,
Harry Hooper
(Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1993); and Richard A. Johnson and Glenn Stout,
Red Sox Century
(Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1999).

Ruth's performance finally earned him a big contract: According to Ruth's contract, his initial salary in 1918 was $5,000. A facsimile appears here:
http://news.yahoo.com/babe-ruth-s-1919-contract-sells-for—1-02-million-at-auction-140200668.html
.

He just wasn't like other players: Average size of war recruits is discussed here:
http://www.tommy1418.com/wwi-facts—figures—myths.html
. Ruth's height and address in Boston appear on his draft card, available here:
http://www.archives.gov/atlanta/wwi-draft/ruth.html
.

“he bends things of metal”:
Boston Post
, January 12, 1918.

He didn't even use the same bat as other players: Depending on the source, the weight of the bat used by Ruth is usually described as anywhere between 37 ounces and 54 ounces, the 54-ounce bat usually cited as the bat Ruth used in 1918 but only in spring training thereafter. Records held by Louisville Slugger indicate that after 1920 Ruth generally ordered bats between 40 and 47 ounces. See
http://www.ask.com/sports-active-lifestyle/weight-babe-ruth-s-bat-44377e44b466a6d9#
.

Batavia Street became so notorious the city later renamed it: Nation's Cities v. 16–17, National League of Cities; American Municipal Association. n.d. p. 17.

With the average yearly household income: Average American income in 1918 is provided by the National Bureau of Labor Statistics:
http://www.bls.gov/opub/uscs/1918-19.pdf
.

The basics of his biography: For basic biographical details in regard to Ruth's early life, see Robert Creamer,
Babe: The Legend Comes to Life
(New York: Simon & Schuster, 1992); and Wagenheim,
Babe Ruth
.

“Ruth's power”:
Boston Post
, January 11, 1918.

After studying law and working for a newspaper, the young Johnson: Basic background on Ban Johnson, as well as some information in regard to Johnson's war with Frazee, can be found in Eugene Murdock,
Ban Johnson: Czar of Baseball
(Westport, Conn.: Greenwood, 1982).

Still, no one was quite sure how the war would affect the game: Basic background information on the impact of World War I on major league baseball can be found in Harold Seymour,
Baseball—The Golden Age
(New York: Oxford University Press, 1971).

Who was Harry Frazee?: Harry Frazee's basic biography appears in F. C. Lane, “The Fire Brand of the American League,”
Baseball Magazine
, March 1919, p. 676; and “H. H. Frazee,”
New York Clipper
, June 8, 1912, p. 3.

“essentially show business”: Lane, “The Fire Brand of the American League,” p. 676.

Why, he even employed
black actors
: In regard to Frazee's relationship with African Americans, in addition to backing black boxers and hiring black actors, documents in his archive indicate he made substantial donations to Fisk University, the historically black college in Nashville, Tennessee. One letter from Fisk asks for $100,000.

“never forgets an enemy”: Murdock,
Ban Johnson
.

“the heaviest financial deal”:
Boston Herald and Journal
, January 11, 1918.

“Well, Ed”:
Boston American
, February 16, 1918.

2. This Means War

“I'd be the laughingstock”: Creamer,
Babe
, p. 152.

“‘Hal Chase' Ruth”:
Boston Globe
, March 18, 1918.

Although it was about 360 feet to the fence: Background on Whittington Park and Hot Springs baseball can be found at
http://www.hotspringsbaseballtrail.com/
.

“He could experiment at the plate”: Creamer,
Babe
, p. 109.

“This is getting painful”:
Boston Globe,
March 21, 1918.

“the colossus”: Keene, Sinibaldi, and Hickey,
The Babe in Red Stockings
, p. 156.

“the right field pavilion”:
Boston Post,
March 24, 1918.

“disappointed when they don't read”: Keene, Sinibaldi, and Hickey,
The Babe in Red Stockings,
p. 159.

“There is every reason”:
Boston Herald and Journal
, April 14, 1918.

3. 1918

“He was like a damn animal”: Martin Smelser,
The Life That Ruth Built
(New York: Quadrangle/New York Times, 1975), p. 76.

In less than a decade, the number of minor leagues: Information on attendance and minor leagues in regard to baseball's popularity appears in
Total Baseball
(third edition).

“formed by yarn”: David Nemec,
The Official Rules of Baseball Illustrated
(Boston: Lyons, 2006).

He arrived early: Ruth's usual pregame routine in Boston is discussed in Wood,
1918
.

“with a sort of conservation of appreciation apparent”:
Boston Globe
, April 16, 1918.

so-called blue laws were in place: For a discussion of baseball and the blue laws, see
http://www.thebaseballzealot.com/baseball-history/sunday-baseball-the-history-of-blue-laws
. Although Sunday baseball was legalized in New York in 1918 it was not put into effect in the major leagues until the 1920 season.

“colossal southpaw pitcher”:
Boston Herald and Journal
, April 30, 1918.

The New York Yankees were the most intriguing destination: For background on Yankees history pre-Ruppert, see Richard Johnson and Glenn Stout,
Yankees Century
(Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2003).

“the fear of the Lord”:
New York Tribune
, May 5, 1918, in Waterman and Springer,
The Year the Red Sox Won the World Series
, p. 62.

“Babe Ruth Is Hero, Wields Vicious Cudgel”:
New York Times
, May 5, 1918.

horsehide the leather of choice: Information on the use of horsehide by the U.S. government during World War I can be found in Bernard M. Baruch,
American Industry in the War: A Report of the War Industries Board
(Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1921).

Almost overnight, the quality of materials: A good discussion of the changing quality of wool used in baseballs during this period appears in William F. McNeil,
The Evolution of Pitching in Major League Baseball
(Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland, 2006), pp. 59, 60. A terrific discussion of the topic appears here:
http://www.baseball-fever.com/showthread.php?31016-Discussion-on-Baseballs-through-the-years
. See also Seymour,
Baseball: The Golden Age
, p. 423; and
http://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/Deadball_Era
. For a discussion of knitting and World War I see
http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&File_Id=5721
.

“Ruth Starts Rally, but Red Sox Lose”:
Boston Globe
, May 7, 1918.

“knocked the back out of the seat”:
New York Tribune
, May 7, 1918.

“Babe Ruth remains the hitting idol”:
Boston Post
, May 7, 1918.

“it sailed on and on”:
Boston Herald and Journal
, May 8, 1918, in Waterman and Springer,
The Year the Red Sox Won the World Series
, p. 65.

“Ruth is the large rumble”:
The Sporting News,
May 16, 1918.

“It's lonesome out there”:
Boston Herald and Journal
, May 11, 1918, in Waterman and Springer,
The Year the Red Sox Won the World Series
, p. 67.

“There is a world of speculation”: Nick Flately,
Boston Record
, May 11, 1918, in ibid.

“the most valuable player”:
Boston Record
, May 13, 1918.

For the next week, baseball stomped its feet and whined: The machinations between major league baseball and the United States War Department in regard to the eligibility of ballplayers for the draft and their possible exemption from the “work or fight” order could easily be the subject of a book itself. The author has previously discussed this in detail in Johnson and Stout,
Red Sox Century
. It also receives a full explication in Seymour,
Baseball: The Golden Age
.
The Sporting News
during this period also published dozens of articles on baseball's reactions to the war.

“No ruling as to whether baseball players”:
Boston Globe,
May 24, 1918, p. 1.

“Certainly we want to win the war”: Ibid.

“all forms of amusements” Ibid.

“It is a wonder”:
Boston Herald and Journal
, May 17, 1918.

“the hardest hit ball of the year”:
Boston Post
, June 3, 1918.

“it's almost impossible to keep him out of the game”:
Detroit News
, June 1, 1918, in Waterman and Springer,
The Year the Red Sox Won the World Series
, p. 91.

“I get sleepy out there in the field”:
Cleveland Press
, June 6, 1918, in ibid., p. 96.

“tornadic thumps”:
Boston Herald and Journal
, June 26, 1918.

“Babe can hit telegraph poles”: Ibid.

“his collection of four-play slams”:
Boston American
, July 1, 1918, in Waterman and Springer,
The Year the Red Sox Won the World Series
, p. 120.

“That was a bum play”: Creamer,
Babe
, p. 162.

“for heavy damages”:
Boston Herald and Journal
, July 4, 1918, in Waterman and Springer,
The Year the Red Sox Won the World Series
, p. 122.