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
Laws, Lines, and Leaps: The Evolution of Sports Gambling Culture
It’s been a wild ride for sports gambling, from back-alley bets to billion-dollar industries,
Super Bowl LX: A History-Making Super Bowl?
Once the Super Bowl game is done and dusted, there will be plenty of
Larry Csonka and Larry Brown – They Took a Licking but Kept on Ticking
In the 1970s, John Cameron Swayze would advertise Timex wristwatches with the slogan, “They
Pete Maravich Becomes NCAA’s All-Time Scoring Leader — January 31, 1970
On January 31, 1970, college basketball witnessed a moment that would echo through the
More Than Cheers: From Face Paint to Fireworks in Sports Fan Culture
Sports are rarely just about the game. From packed stadiums echoing with chants to
Ancient Grit: The Evolution of Combat from Olympia to Rome
Ancient Greeks transformed raw violence into a structured cult. In 708 BC, the introduction
Why Has Interest In The Super Bowl Grown In The UK Over The Past 20 Years?
Over the past two decades, the Super Bowl, America’s annual championship game and one
Reliving England’s Worst World Cup Heartbreaks
The English Football League is the oldest league system dating way back to 1888.