Babe Ruth

            
            
            
            
            
            
             "Babe" Ruth was born George Herman Ruth, Jr. on February 6, 1895 at 216 Emory Street in Baltimore, Maryland. He was the son of a saloonkeeper in Baltimore, Maryland who lived a far from happy childhood. George was one of eight children, but only he and one sister survived childhood. His parents" life focused on the saloon that was located at what is now center field at the Baltimore Orioles" Camden Yards. When Babe was just seven years old, his father turned custody of his son over to the Xaverian brothers who ran St. Mary's Industrial School in Baltimore. While there, Brother Matthias became the father figure in his life. Matthias encouraged the young George's natural talent in the young sport of baseball as he was a pitcher, catcher, and an outstanding hitter for the school team. .
             When Babe was 19, Jack Dunn, owner and manager of the Baltimore Orioles, recognized the young man's talent and signed him to a contract. Jack had been known for finding promising young players and helping them into careers in the major leagues.
             He began his baseball career in 1914 with the Baltimore Orioles, a minor league team at the time. Later that same year, he joined the Boston Red Sox as a pitcher. Babe had 2,056 career base on balls, 72 games with two or more home runs and a .343 batting average (Babe Ruth, Baseball Statistics). Babe had 714 career homeruns while playing for the Boston Red sox. Babe Ruth set a record of 60 home runs during a 154-game season. In 1961, Roger Maris hit 61 home runs during a 162-game season. Both feats were considered major league records until 1991, when Maris's 61 home runs were recognized as the sole record. Ruth hit 714 homers during his career; a record until Henry Aaron hit his 715th home run in 1974. In the 1916 and 1918 World Series, Ruth pitched 29 2/3 consecutive scoreless innings. He won 94 games and lost 46 during his major league career. But Ruth had even greater talent as a hitter and began to play regularly in the outfield in 1918.