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George Herman Ruth, Jr. (February 6, 1895 – August 16, 1948), also popularly known as "Babe", "The Bambino", and "The Sultan of Swat", was an American Major League baseball player from 1914 to 1935. Named the greatest baseball player in history in various surveys and rankings, his home run hitting prowess and charismatic personality made him a larger than life figure in the " Roaring Twenties". He was the first player to hit 60 home runs in one season (1927), a record which stood for 34 years until broken by Roger Maris in 1961. Ruth's lifetime total of 714 home runs at his retirement in 1935 was a record for 39 years, until broken by Hank Aaron in 1974. Unlike many power hitters, Ruth also hit for average: his .342 lifetime batting is tenth highest in baseball history, and in one season (1923) he hit .393. His .690 career slugging percentage, and 1.164 career OPS, remain the major league records.

Ruth dominated in the era in which he played. He led the league in home runs during a season twelve times, slugging percentage thirteen times, OPS thirteen times, runs scored eight times, and RBIs six times. Each of those totals represents a modern record (and also an all-time record, except for RBIs). ^[1]

In 1936, Ruth became one of the first five players elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. In 1969, he was named baseball's Greatest Player Ever in a ballot commemorating the 100th anniversary of professional baseball. In 1998, The Sporting News ranked Ruth Number 1 on the list of "Baseball's 100 Greatest Players." In 1999, baseball fans named Ruth to the Major League Baseball All-Century Team. According to ESPN, he was the first true American sports celebrity superstar whose fame transcended baseball.^[2] In a 1999 ESPN poll, he was ranked as the third greatest US athlete of the century, behind Michael Jordan and Muhammad Ali.

Beyond his statistics, Ruth completely changed baseball itself. The popularity of the game exploded in the 1920s, largely due to him. Ruth ushered in the " live-ball era," as his big swing led to escalating home run totals that not only excited fans, but helped baseball evolve from a low-scoring, speed-dominated game to a high-scoring power game.

Off the field he was famous for his charity, but also was noted for his often reckless lifestyle. Even though he died nearly 60 years ago, his name is still one of the most famous in American sports. His participation in an all-star tour of Japan in 1934 sparked that country's interest in professional baseball; a decade later, Japanese soldiers seeking the ultimate insult for American troops would sometimes shout, "To hell with Babe Ruth!"^[3]

Contents 1 Collectables 2 All-time ranks 3 See also 4 References and notes 5 External links

[edit] Collectables

[edit] All-time ranks

• 3rd on all-time home run list with 714
• 10th on all-time batting average list with .342
• 2nd on all-time RBI list with 2,217
• 1st on all-time slugging % with 0.690
• 2nd on all-time on-base % list with .474
• 1st on all-time OPS with 1.164
• 4th on all-time runs list with 2,174
• 6th on all-time total bases list with 5,793
• 3rd on all-time bases on balls list with 2,062

[edit] See also

• Babe Ruth Award
• Babe Ruth League
• List of Major League Baseball Home Run Records
• List of Major League Baseball RBI Records
• DHL Hometown Heroes

[edit] References and notes

[edit] External links

• baberuth.com - Official site
• baberuthmuseum.com Ruth Museum
• espn.go.com - article by Larry Schwartz
• Find-A-Grave profile for Babe Ruth
• Photo of Babe Ruth as a member of the 1916 Red Sox