Babe Ruth: Legends in Sports by Matt Christopher

Author:Matt Christopher [Christopher, Matt]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Juvenile Nonfiction, Biography & Autobiography, Sports & Recreation, Baseball & Softball
ISBN: 9780316093736
Google: v6qyY9PvtS0C
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Published: 2009-12-19T05:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER FIVE

1923–1925

Ups and Downs

Babe Ruth kept his promise that winter. He returned to his Massachusetts farm, reuniting with Helen after a long separation, and rarely ventured into the city. He stopped drinking, watched what he ate, and spent the winter doing farm work, skating, chopping wood, and going for long hikes. He knew he had messed up in 1922 and was determined to prove that he was still the best player in the game.

New York fans were looking forward to the 1923 season. At the cost of $2.5 million dollars, the Yankees had finally built their own ballpark, Yankee Stadium. The new park in the Bronx was huge, capable of holding more than 70,000 fans, most of whom were looking forward to seeing the Babe hit some home runs. The park designers had done what they could to satisfy them by making sure the fence in right field was short enough for Ruth to hit home runs with the same frequency he had at the Polo Grounds.

This year, the Bambino didn’t let them down. He showed up at spring training in tremendous shape, weighing 209 pounds. And on opening day at Yankee Stadium he announced his return in dramatic fashion.

With the score 1–0 in favor of the Yankees in the fourth inning, Ruth came to bat. Boston pitcher Howard Ehmke let a ball over the plate and Ruth gave it everything he had.

The ball soared deep and high to right field as everyone in the stadium stood and craned their necks to watch the flight of the ball. When it finally came down it was ten rows deep in the right-field stands. Babe Ruth had hit the first home run in Yankee Stadium! After the Yankee victory that day, a sports-writer referred to the stadium as “the House that Ruth Built,” a nickname that has stayed with it ever since.

For the rest of the season there was no stopping New York. Although Ruth didn’t hit home runs quite as frequently as before, ending the season with only forty-one, he hit better than ever, staying above .400 for most of the year before finishing at .393. The Yankees won the pennant by sixteen games over Detroit. Once again, they played the New York Giants in the World Series.

Thus far, Ruth had done everything in New York but help the Yankees win a championship. For all his accomplishments he knew he wouldn’t really be considered a success until the Yankees won the series. Giants’ manager John McGraw entered the series confident. After all, his pitchers had shut down Ruth in both 1921 and 1922 by throwing him outside curve balls. “The same system,” he said, “will suffice.”

This time, however, Ruth was ready. He tripled in the first game, a Yankee loss, but in game two he broke loose with two long home runs and narrowly missed a third. Although the Giants won game three 1–0, the Giants chose to walk Ruth twice rather than let him hit. Then, in game four, Ruth

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