Babe Ruth Quotes

Babe Ruth is one of the most iconic figures in baseball history. He was a larger-than-life character on and off the field, and his legend has only grown in the years since his death.

Table of Contents:

1. Early Life and Career

2. The Major Leagues

3. The Babe Ruth Effect

4. Later Years

5. Legacy

6. Babe Ruth Top Quotes

Early Life and Career

George Herman Ruth Jr. was born on February 6th, 1895, in Baltimore, Maryland. He was the first of eight children born to Kate Schamberger and George Herman Ruth Sr.

Ruth’s father was a saloon owner and had a reputation as a hard drinker. His mother was a kind and religious woman who instilled strict Catholic values in her children.

Ruth’s parents were not wealthy, and his early life was marked by poverty and hardship. He attended a Catholic school called St. Mary’s Industrial School for Boys, which was essentially a reform school for wayward children.

It was at St. Mary’s that Ruth first began to play baseball. He quickly showed a natural talent for the game and was soon signed by the Baltimore Orioles, a minor league team.

In 1914, Ruth was signed by the Boston Red Sox, and his career in the major leagues began.

The Major Leagues

Ruth made his major league debut with the Red Sox in 1915. He was used primarily as a pitcher and had instant success, helping the team to win the World Series in 1916.

However, Ruth began to experience some problems with alcohol and his personal life began to unravel. He was traded to the New York Yankees in 1920, a move that would change the course of baseball history.

Ruth quickly became a fan favorite in New York, thanks to his prodigious hitting. He set numerous records for home runs and became the most famous player in the game.

The Yankees won the World Series in Ruth’s first year with the team, and they would go on to win four more championships during his time in New York.

The Babe Ruth Effect

Ruth’s success on the field had a profound impact on the game of baseball. His power hitting sparked a change in strategy, as teams began to focus more on offense than defense.

Ruth’s celebrity status also helped to increase the popularity of baseball. His larger-than-life persona made him a household name, and he became one of the first athletes to achieve true global fame.

Later Years

Ruth retired from baseball in 1935 and was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1936. He died of cancer in 1948, at the age of 53.

Ruth’s legacy continues to this day. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest baseball players of all time, and his impact on the game is still felt nearly a century after his retirement.

Legacy

Babe Ruth died on August 16, 1948, of cancer. He was 53 years old.

Ruth was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1936. His jersey number, 3, was retired by the Yankees in 1948. In 1969, he was named to the Major League Baseball All-Century Team.

Ruth’s legend has only grown in the years since his death. He is still considered one of the greatest baseball players of all time.

Babe Ruth Top Quotes

“Love the game of baseball and baseball will love you.” – Babe Ruth

“Baseball is the greatest game in the world and deserves the best you can give it.” – Babe Ruth

“I said I’m going to hit the next one right over the flagpole. God must have been with me.” – Babe Ruth

“Hotter ’n hell, ain’t it, Prez?” – Babe Ruth

“Who is richer? The man who is seen, but cannot see? Or the man who is not being seen, but can see?” – Babe Ruth

“Whenever I hit a home run, I make certain I touch all four bases.” – Babe Ruth

“Reading isn’t good for a ballplayer. Not good for his eyes. If my eyes went bad even a little bit I couldn’t hit home runs. So I gave up reading.” – Babe Ruth

“Every strike brings me closer to the next home run.” – Babe Ruth

“Heroes get remembered, but legends never die.” – Babe Ruth

“What the hell has Hoover got to do with it? Besides, I had a better year than he did.” – Babe Ruth

“I know, but I had a better year than Hoover.” – Babe Ruth

“What I am, what I have, what I am going to leave behind me – all this I owe to the game of baseball.” – Babe Ruth

“Yesterday’s home runs don’t win today’s games.” – Babe Ruth

“I’m only going one way.” – Babe Ruth

“Wealth is always attracted, never pursued.” – Babe Ruth

“A part of control is learning to correct your weaknesses.” – Babe Ruth

“Cobb is a prick. But he sure can hit. God Almighty, that man can hit.” – Babe Ruth

“I won’t be happy until we have every boy in America between the ages of six and sixteen wearing a glove and swinging a bat.” – Babe Ruth

“What the hell difference does it make?” – Babe Ruth

“If you want to hit home runs, you’ve go to swing a lot.” – Babe Ruth

“It’s hard to beat a person who never gives up.” – Babe Ruth

“I hear the cheers when they roared and the jeers when they echoed.” – Babe Ruth

“The termites have got me.” – Babe Ruth

“Baseball was, is and always will be to me the best game in the world.” – Babe Ruth

“The way a team plays as a whole determines its success. You may have the greatest bunch of individual stars in the world, but if they don’t play together, the club won’t be worth a dime.” – Babe Ruth

“I’ll promise to go easier on drinking and to get to bed earlier, but not for you, fifty thousand dollars, or two-hundred and fifty thousand dollars will I give up women. They’re too much fun.” – Babe Ruth

“Don’t ever forget two things I’m going to tell you. One, don’t believe everything that’s written about you. Two, don’t pick up too many checks.” – Babe Ruth

“Never let the fear of striking out keep you from playing the game.” – Babe Ruth

“As soon as I got out there I felt a strange relationship with the pitcher’s mound. It was as if I’d been born out there. Pitching just felt like the most natural thing in the world. Striking out batters was easy.” – Babe Ruth

“I swing big, with everything I’ve got. I hit big or I miss big. I like to live as big as I can.” – Babe Ruth

“I’ve never heard a crowd boo a homer, but I’ve heard plenty of boos after a strikeout.” – Babe Ruth

“Sometimes when I reflect on all the beer I drink, I feel ashamed. Then I look into the glass and think about the workers in the brewery and all of their hopes and dreams. If I didn’t drink this beer, they might be out of work and their dreams would be shattered. I think, ‘It is better to drink this beer and let their dreams come true than be selfish and worry about my liver.” – Babe Ruth

“You know this baseball game of ours comes up from the youth – that means the boys. And after you’ve been a boy, and grow up to know how to play ball, then you come to the boys you see representing themselves today in our national pastime.” – Babe Ruth

“I’d give a year of my life if I could hit a homerun on opening day of this great new park.” – Babe Ruth

“If it wasn’t for baseball, I’d be in either the penitentiary or the cemetery.” – Babe Ruth

“They started something here, and the kids are keeping the ball rolling.” – Babe Ruth

“Life is a game like any other; we just don’t take it as seriously.” – Babe Ruth

“I didn’t mean to hit the umpire with the dirt, but I did mean to hit that bastard in the stands.” – Babe Ruth

“Don’t be afraid to take advice. There’s always something new to learn.” – Babe Ruth

“What do I think about when I strike out? I think about hitting home runs.” – Babe Ruth

“To my sick little pal. I will try to knock you another homer, maybe two today.” – Babe Ruth

“You just can’t beat the person who never gives up.” – Babe Ruth

“Gee, its lonesome in the outfield. It’s hard to keep awake with nothing to do.” – Babe Ruth

“If it wasn’t for baseball, I’d be in either the penitentiary or the cemetery. I have the same violent temper my father and older brother had. Both died of injuries from street fights in Baltimore, fights begun by flare-ups of their tempers.” – Babe Ruth

“All I can tell them is pick a good one and sock it. I get back to the dugout and they ask me what it was I hit and I tell them I don’t know except it looked good.” – Babe Ruth

“Well, the good Lord and good luck must have been with me because I did exactly what I said I was going to do.” – Babe Ruth

“The way a team plays as a whole determines its success.” – Babe Ruth

“I have only one superstition. I touch all the bases when I hit a home run.” – Babe Ruth

“The only real game, I think, in the world is baseball.” – Babe Ruth

“I learned early to drink beer, wine and whiskey. And I think I was about 5 when I first chewed tobacco.” – Babe Ruth

_{Source: Wikipedia Baseball Reference Baberuth Britannica Baseballhall Mlb Baberuth Museum Baseball Almanac History Bleacher Report}