OTD in 1914: Boston Red Sox Purchased Minor League Pitcher Babe Ruth
July 9, 1914: Boston Red Sox purchased Baltimore Orioles star pitcher Babe Ruth, who would become the MLB's greatest player
Library of Congress
BySam Grigsby, PSO Director of Sports History Jul 09, 2021
July 9, 1914: Boston #RedSox purchased the contract of SP Babe Ruth from the then-minor league Baltimore Orioles for $25,000 pic.twitter.com/NobOlUiDWV
Babe Ruth played in Boston for about six seasons before the Yankees purchased him. Baseball fans around the world recognize him as one of the GOATs, but no one could have guessed his future prior to his extraordinary career in New York. Ruth managed to bat .308 over 391 games in a Red Sox jersey, but only collected 49 home runs as he started his big league career mostly as a pitcher. Regardless of where he played his best ball, the baseball world was lucky to have him called up to the Bigs.
On this day in 1914, Boston bought the Babe’s contract from his hometown Minor League squad, the Baltimore Orioles, for $25,000. Many Boston fans feel sour when they think about their franchise sending the future Sultan of Swat to their archenemy, but they should be proud to have first discovered the biggest game-changer in baseball history.
June 10, 1921: In just his 4th season off the pitcher’s mound, New York #Yankees OF Babe Ruth became MLB's all-time HR leader with his 120th career homer. Ruth would retire with 714 HR which stood as the all-time record until Hank Aaron surpassed him on April 8, 1974 pic.twitter.com/yCYsX03atu