While Babe Ruth is most known for his prodigious power as a slugger, he started his career as a pitcher, and a very good one at that. In 1914, Babe appeared in five games for the Red Sox, pitching in four of them. He won his major league debut on July 11, 1914. Babe became a permanent fixture in the Red Sox rotation in 1915, accumulating an 18-8 record with an ERA of 2.44. He followed up his successful first season with a 23-12 campaign in 1916, leading the league with a 1.75 ERA. By 1917, however, his ability at the plate began to rival his pitching virtuosity. Babe had displayed enormous power in his limited plate appearances, so it was decided his bat was too good to be left out of the lineup on a daily basis. As a result, in 1918, the transition began to turn Babe into an everyday player. That year, he tied for the major-league lead in homeruns with 11, and followed that up by setting a single season home run record of 29 dingers in 1919. Little did he know that the 1919 season would be his last with Boston. On December 26, 1919, Babe was sold to the New York Yankees and the two teams would never be the same again.
Here offered is the earliest bat known used by Babe Ruth at the dawn of his transition from elite pitcher into the greatest slugger the game would ever know. As defined by the factory sidewritten return date of July 11, 1916, the labeling period of this "Babe" Ruth Game Used Bat can be definitively dated to 1916. This is the first year that "Hillerich & Bradsby Co." appeared branded in the center brand. A notable feature of this bat is the absence of Ruth's name from the front barrel. Blank barrel bats were common for players during the era. In fact the appearance of the notation 'Do not brand' in Ruth's Professional Bat Ordering Record (PBOR), on file at Louisville Slugger Inc. are consistent with this model. Factory sidewritten on the left barrel is the unmistakable marking "George Ruth Boston" in faint grease pencil. Below "Boston" is "7-11-16", the date the bat was received at Hillerich & Bradsby Co. after being returned to the factory by "Babe"
Ruth. While the factory side writing on the bat establishes unquestionable provenance, its quality is further enhanced by exceptional usage characteristics. Several ball marks are visible on the sidewritten left barrel, proper for Ruth's label-down batting posture, with slight grain swelling from contact. Cleat marks decorate the back and right barrel and the handle features a repaired crack. Stamps of "BB" and "BAA" on the knob end were applied after Ruth's use and are clearly some form of factory code for identification purposes. Length and weight of thirty-six inches and forty-four ounces respectively are properly "Ruthian" in dimension. Without question this is among the earliest and most important game used treasures from the storied career of the great Bambino we have ever handled. It is worthy of a place of honor at the center of any significant collection of historic baseball artifacts.
Includes a LOA from John Taube of PSA/DNA (Grade GU10).