Babe Ruth

George Herman Ruth, (b. February 6, 1895, d. August 16, 1948), better known as Babe Ruth, also commonly known by the nicknames The Bambino and The Sultan of Swat, was an American baseball player and United States national icon. He was one of the first five players elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame and he was the first player to hit over 30, 40 and 50 home runs in one season. His record of 60 home runs in the 1927 season stood for 34 years until it was broken by Roger Maris in 1961. He also was a member of the original American League All-Star team in 1933. In 1998, The Sporting News named Ruth as Number One in its list of "Baseball's 100 Greatest Players."

1929-1931

In 1929, the Yankees World Series run ended, and the three years period from 1929-1931 would be the longest stretch (excluding his ending years of 1933-1935) that a Ruth team did not win a pennant. The offense was still highly productive, and in fact the 1930 and 1931 teams outscored the great 1927 team, but the pitching fell off badly. The Philadelphia Athletics overtook the Yankees, and for the next three years won the A.L. pennant. Manager Connie Mack had rebuilt the A's into one of the best teams ever, and they won the World Series in 1929 and 1930 but were upset the 1931 series in seven games. The powerful lineup was led by Jimmie Foxx, Al Simmons, Mickey Cochrane, and the pitching was anchored by Lefty Grove, who undoubtedly was the best pitcher of his era (not to mention one of the greatest pitchers of all-time). Although the Yankees slipped, Ruth continued to put up stellar numbers, and led or tied for the league lead in home runs all three of these years.

Related Topics:
1929 - World Series - 1930 - 1931 - Philadelphia Athletics - Connie Mack - Jimmie Foxx - Al Simmons - Mickey Cochrane - Lefty Grove

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It was during the 1929 season that another tragedy struck close to Ruth. Yankee manager Miller Huggins developed an ugly looking carbuncle on his face that turned out to be a symptom of erysipelas, a streptococcal infection of the skin. The bacterial infection had been left untreated for too long, and sepsis developed, which proved fatal for Huggins in September. Huggins had been the only manager Ruth had as a Yankee, and, despite many run-ins with the feisty Huggins, Ruth had great admiration and respect for him. After hearing of his death, Ruth and several Yankee players cried, and the league paid its respect by cancelling all games the day after his death.

Related Topics:
1929 - Miller Huggins - Carbuncle - Erysipelas - Infection - Skin - Sepsis - September

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