Boston Red Sox: 50 greatest players of all-time
By Phil Watson
The Red Sox bought the contract of teenage sensation Babe Ruth from the International League’s Baltimore Orioles in the spring of 1914 and in July the 19-year-old pitched seven strong innings while getting the win in his debut.
He joined the rotation in 1915 and put together a terrific season for the eventual World Series champions in 1916, leading the American League in ERA, starts, shutouts and hits per nine innings.
A 20-game winner again in 1917, Ruth led the AL with 35 complete games.
Had he just been a pitcher, based on his three seasons of full-time duty, Ruth could have very well been one of the greatest left-handers of all-time. He was used frequenly as a pinch-hitter and in 1918, the Red Sox started using him in left field and first base when he wasn’t on the mound.
He led the league in home runs, slugging and OPS despite playing in only 95 games, 20 of them as a pitcher.
In 1919, his pitching load was down to 17 appearances and he was primarily the left fielder, leading the league in homers, RBI, runs scored, on-base percentage, slugging, OPS and total bases.
In December 1919, he was sold to the New York Yankees for $100,000 and a legend was born.
As a pitcher, Ruth was 94-46 in parts of six seasons, with a 2.19 ERA and 1.142 WHIP — an ERA+ of 125 — and struck out 425 in 1,190.1 innings. He started 143 of is 158 appearances with 105 complete games and 17 shutouts.
In two World Series appearances in 1916 and 1918, Ruth was 3-0 in three starts with a 0.87 ERA and 0.935 WHIP in 31 innings. That ERA remains the second-lowest among starting pitchers in World Series history with 30 or more innings.
Meanwhile, he did some damage at the plate as well. He hit .308/.413/.981, an OPS+ of 190, with the Red Sox, with 49 homers, 224 RBI and 202 runs in 391 games.
Ruth became the all-time home run king with New York, finishing his career back in Boston with the Braves in 1935 with 714 home runs. One of the members of the Hall of Fame’s first induction class in 1939, Ruth died from cancer on Aug. 16, 1948 at the age of 53.