September 24, 1919 – It was a sign of good things to come when then, Boston Red Sox slugger Babe Ruth smashed a home run off of New York Yankees pitcher Bob Shawkey. It was the young batter’s 28th of the season and set an MLB season home run record. It also provided the only run in the game for Boston that day as they suffered a 2-1 loss to their rivals at the Polo Grounds in New York.
Perhaps that was the day the New York brass decided they wanted to get Ruth on their roster, as a few months later on January 5, 1920, it was announced that the rights to the player had been purchased by the Yankees from the Red Sox for $125,000. We all forget that the Bambino played 6 seasons in Beantown before he donned the pinstripes of NY.
To find more great daily sports history make sure to check out the Sports Jersey Dispatch and Pigskin Dispatch.
More From Sports History Network

The Ultimate Salary Showdown: Ancient Roman Gladiators vs. Modern Sports Superstars
In the book of Niccolò Arcangeli, “Gladiators. The stars of the first Talent show

The 1971 Pittsburgh Pirates: A Championship Season to Remember
If you’re a regular reader of my articles or a listener of my podcasts,

John Wooden: A Two-Time Hall of Famer and Basketball Legend For The Ages
This is a story about excellence. There are some people out there who are

The Legacy of the 1970s Pittsburgh Pirates: A Dominant Decade
Although a player’s strike caused the 1972 season to start a week and a

1899: The Cardinals’ First Season
Before player drafts, salary caps, and heck, even before the National Football League, we

1969 New York Jets (A Year After The Guarantee)
Much has been said and written about the 1968 New York Jets, and with

NBA Rivalries: Golden State Warriors vs. Memphis Grizzlies
Most rivalries are decades old. They begin when the team is created or moved

1978 – The Second “World’s Strongest Man Competition”
In my last article, I wrote about the first World’s Strongest Man contest in