SABR Series: “Babe Ruth: From the Penthouse to the basement…and back to the Penthouse” A presentation by Gary Sarnoff

In August of 1924, Babe Ruth was on top of the World. He had won the American League MVP Award in 1923, his 1924 batting average was over .400, and he was leading the American League in home runs and RBIs. In addition, the 1924 New York Yankees, the defending World Champions, were in first place and appeared to be heading for their fourth straight pennant. But then Ruth went into a batting slump, and the Yankees finished second in 1924.

Following the disappointment of not going to the World Series for the first time in 1920, Ruth endured a difficult Winter and Spring. Before the 1925 season, Ruth became ill and suffered his famous “Stomachache heard around the World” that kept him out of action for the first two months of the season. When he returned to action, he performed poorly on the diamond and had a falling out with his manager to go along with his already failing marriage. His poor play on the field, and his antics off the field, resulted in a mid-season suspension and a heavy fine.
Ruth eventually made his peace with his manager, was reinstated and returned to the starting lineup, but his 1925 season turned out to be one of his worst, and one of the worst for the Yankees, who finished second-to-last in the American League.

Heading in the 1926 season, the baseball experts believed that Ruth, now over the age of thirty, would never regain his superstar status and the Yankees would finish in the lower half of the American League standings.

But Ruth and the Yankees bounced back, surprised the experts, and returned to the top of the American League.

Author and SABR member Gary Sarnoff will talk about the Yankees’ and Ruth’s downfall, and how they bounced back and became one of the greatest dynasties in sports history.