Babe Ruth (1936)


Date of Birth: 2/6/1895
Date of Death: 8/16/1948
Birthplace: Baltimore, Maryland

George Herman "Babe" Ruth had a 25 year career in major league baseball. He ended his career in 1935, leading baseball records for the number of home runs in a season (60) and career home runs (714). Ruth was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1936, one year after he retired.

Ruth entered professional baseball in 1914 when Jack Dunn signed him to the Baltimore Orioles, a minor league team at the time. Because of his young age (19) and looks, he was called Dunn's babe and his new name became Babe Ruth to the baseball world.

Boston Red Sox

On July 9, 1914, Ruth's contract was purchased by the Boston Red Sox and his major league baseball career began. That season, he played in four games as a pitcher and five games as a batter with Boston. He pitched 23.0 innings and he had a 3.91 ERA.

In 1915, Ruth pitched in 32 games with the Red Sox. He finished the season with 18 wins and 8 losses, 112 strikeouts to 85 walks, and a 2.44 ERA in 217.2 innings. He also batted in 42 games and he had 29 hits and a .315 batting average.

Ruth continued to pitch well in 1916, finishing the season with a career low ERA of 1.75. He had a career high 170 strikeouts to 118 walks and 23 wins to 12 losses, in 323.2 innings in 44 games. As a batter, he had 37 hits and a .272 batting average in 67 games.

Ruth excelled as a pitcher in 1917, leading the American League in complete games with 35. He had career highs in wins with 24 (to 13 losses) and innings pitched with 326.1. His ERA in 41 games was 2.01. He also excelled as a batter with 40 hits and a .325 batting average in 52 games.

Although he began his career with the Red Sox as a two way player and he had strong numbers as a pitcher, he was switched to the outfield in 1918. He still pitched 20 games that year, ending the season with a 13-7 record and an ERA of 2.22. He also led the American League in home runs with 11.

Ruth had an outstanding year as a batter in 1919, when he led the AL in home runs (29), on-base percentage (.456), and OPS (1.113). He finished the season with 139 hits, 34 doubles, and 12 triples in 130 games. He continued to also pitch, finishing with 9 wins and 5 losses, 30 strikeouts to 58 walks, and a 2.97 ERA in 133.1 innings in 17 games.

New York Yankees

At the end of December, 1919, the Red Sox made a fatal mistake for the team - they sold Ruth to the New York Yankees for $100,000. The Yankees decided that Ruth should only be a batter and fielder and his pitching career ended. In his first year with the Yankees, Ruth led the AL in home runs, RBIs, walks, on-base percentage, and OPS. He finished the season with 172 hits, 36 doubles, 54 home runs, 137 RBIs, 80 strikeouts to 148 walks, .376 batting average, .530 on-base percentage, and a career high OPS of 1.377 in 142 games.

Ruth again led the AL in home runs, RBIs, walks, on-base percentage, and OPS in 1921. That season, he had 204 hits, 44 doubles, a career high 16 triples, 59 home runs, career highs in RBIs (171) and stolen bases (17), 81 strikeouts to 144 walks, a .378 batting average, an on-base percentage of .512, and an OPS of 1.358 in 152 games.

In 1922, Ruth led the AL in walks with 84 (to 80 strikeouts) and OPS (1.106). He finished the season with 128 hits, 24 doubles, 35 home runs, 99 RBIs, and a .315 batting average in 110 games.

Ruth won the AL MVP award in 1923. He led the league in home runs, RBIs, walks, on-base percentage, and OPS. He had career highs in hits (205), doubles (45), walks (170 to 93 strikeouts), stolen bases (17), batting average (.393), and on-base percentage (.545).

In 1924, Ruth led the AL in batting average (.378), home runs (46), walks (142 to 81 strikeouts), on-base percentage (.513), and OPS (1.252).

Ruth had an average season in 1925. That year, he batted just .290 with 104 hits, 25 home runs, and 66 RBIs in 98 games. However, he came back strong in 1926, when he led the AL in home runs (47), RBIs (146), walks (144 to 76 strikeouts), on-base percentage (.516), and OPS (1.253). He also had 184 hits and 30 doubles in 152 games.

Ruth continued to lead the AL in home runs and OPS from 1927 through 1931. He also led the league in walks in 1927, 1928, 1930, 1931, 1932, and 1933. He led the league in on-base percentage in 1930, 1931, and 1932. His statistics for those seasons are:

  • 1927, 152 games: 192 hits, 29 doubles, 60 home runs, 164 RBIs, 89 strikeouts to 138 walks, .356 batting average, 1.259 OPS, .487 on-base percentage
  • 1928, 154 games: 173 hits, 29 doubles, 54 home runs, 142 RBIs, 87 strikeouts to 135 walks, .323 batting average, 1.170 OPS, .461 on-base percentage
  • 1929, 135 games: 172 hits, 26 doubles, 46 home runs, 154 RBIs, 60 strikeouts to 72 walks, .345 batting average, 1.127 OPS, .430 on-base percentage
  • 1930, 145 games: 186 hits, 28 doubles, 49 home runs, 153 RBIs, 61 strikeouts to 136 walks, .359 batting average, 1.225 OPS, .493 on-base percentage
  • 1931, 145 games: 199 hits, 31 doubles, 46 home runs, 163 RBIs, 51 strikeouts to 128 walks, .373 batting average, 1.195 OPS, .495 on-base percentage
  • 1932, 133 games: 156 hits, 41 home runs, 137 RBIs, 62 strikeouts to 130 walks, .341 batting average, 1.150 OPS, .489 on-base percentage
  • 1933, 137 games: 138 hits, 21 doubles, 34 home runs, 103 RBIs, 90 strikeouts to 114 walks, .301 batting average, 1.024 OPS, .442 on-base percentage

Ruth's numbers fell considerably in 1934. That season, he finished with 105 hits, 17 doubles, 22 home runs, 84 RBIs, 63 strikeouts to 103 walks, and a .288 batting average in 125 games. He was released by the Yankees on February 26, 1935.

Boston Braves

Ruth signed with the Boston Braves on the same day that he was released by the Yankees. However, Ruth retired soon afterwards as his body gave out and his performance deteriorated. In his last season (1935), Ruth had a .181 batting average with six home runs in 72 at bats in 28 games.

Awards and MLB Records

  • AL MVP in 1923
  • AL Batting Title in 1924
  • Led AL in home runs 12 times
  • Led AL in RBIs 5 times
  • Led AL in walks 11 times
  • Led AL in on-base percentage 10 times
  • Led AL in OPS 13 times

Career Statistics

Statistics for Ruth in 17 full seasons (1918-1934) in the major leagues include:

  • 11 seasons with over 150 hits, with a high of 205 in 1923
  • 7 seasons with 30 or more doubles, with a high of 45 in 1923
  • 16 seasons with over 20 home runs, with a high of 60 in 1927
  • 13 seasons with over 100 RBIs, with a high of 164 in 1927
  • 15 seasons with a batting average of .300 or better, with a high of .393 in 1923

Career batting statistics for Ruth include:

  • 2,503 games played
  • 2,873 hits
  • 506 doubles
  • 136 triples
  • 714 home runs
  • 123 stolen bases
  • 1,330 strikeouts to 2,056 walks
  • .342 batting average

Career fielding statistics for Ruth as an outfielder include:

  • 2,241 games played
  • 4,444 putouts
  • 155 errors
  • .968 fielding percentage

Career pitching statistics for Ruth include:

  • 10 years as a pitcher
  • 163 games played
  • 1,221.1 innings pitched
  • 94-46 win-loss record
  • 488 strikeouts to 441 walks
  • 2.28 ERA

Career postseason statistics for Ruth include:

  • 41 games played
  • 129 at-bats
  • 42 hits
  • 5 doubles
  • 2 triples
  • 15 home runs
  • 4 stolen bases
  • 30 RBIs
  • 30 strikeouts to 33 walks
  • .326 batting average
  • .474 on-base percentage
  • 1.164 OPS

Post Playing Career

After retiring, Ruth played in exhibition baseball games. In 1938, he was the first base coach for the Brooklyn Dodgers.

Sources for Information
Wikipedia - Babe Ruth
ESPN - Babe Ruth
Baseball Reference - Babe Ruth

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