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Boston Red Sox: Babe Ruth Makes Major League Debut as Pitcher

By Ehsan Kassim

May 14, 2014; Minneapolis, MN, USA; A general view of a glove and Boston Red Sox hat in the dugout prior to a game between the Boston Red Sox and Minnesota Twins at Target Field. Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-USA TODAY Sports
May 14, 2014; Minneapolis, MN, USA; A general view of a glove and Boston Red Sox hat in the dugout prior to a game between the Boston Red Sox and Minnesota Twins at Target Field. Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-USA TODAY Sports /
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102 years ago on this date, the great Babe Ruth made his major league debut for the Boston Red Sox, as a starting pitcher.

History will mostly remember one of the greatest players of all time, George Herman “Babe” Ruth, as a New York Yankee, not a Boston Red Sock. History will also remember Ruth as one of the all-time great hitters in baseball history, but once upon a time, he was a pitcher as well.

These two came together on July 11th, 1914, as Babe Ruth made his major league debut as a pitcher for the Boston Red Sox against the Cleveland Naps.

The Boston Red Sox had purchased the contract of Ruth the day before from the Baltimore Orioles, along with Ernie Shore and Ben Egan. The Sox paid more than $25,000 for the three players, according to the Boston Globe.

Ruth pitched seven solid innings for the Sox in his debut. He allowed three runs (two earned) on eight hits, struck out one hitter and did not walk anyone. He collected the victory in the start, as the Boston Red Sox went on to win the game by the final score of 4-3.

After cruising through the first six innings, scattering five hits, the Naps collected three singles and a sac fly plated the team’s only run off Ruth in the game. Ruth was pinch-hit for in the bottom of the inning.

Tris Speaker, Nap Lajoie, “Shoeless” Joe Jackson and Ray Chapman were among the more well-known players to also play in Ruth’s debut. Speaker and Lajoie are now in the Hall of Fame, with Jackson belonging there as well, had it not been for his involvement in the 1919 scandal with the
“Black Sox.”

Chapman is known as the only player that died on due to an injury suffered on the field in 1920.

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At the time of his debut, Ruth was only 19 years old. He spent the majority of the season in the minors, but appeared in four games for the Red Sox, including four appearances as a pitcher.

Ruth made three starts for the Sox in 1914, posting a 3.91 ERA and a 3.65 FIP in 23 total innings. Ruth actually walked more hitters (2.74) then he struck out (1.17) per nine innings in his rookie season.

Ruth also had 10 plate appearances for the Sox, striking out four times, posting a slash line of just .200/.200/.300 for a 44 wRC+. That’s not terrible for a 19-year-old, but a far cry from what he went on to post as a hitter the rest of his playing career.

The following season, Ruth posted a 2.44 ERA and a 2.31 FIP in 217.2 innings of work for the Sox. He posted a 2.5 fWAR on the season

Ruth also added a .315/.376/.576 slash line with a 177 wRC+ in 103 plate appearances for the Sox. He knocked out four home runs and posted a .261 ISO, a slight dose of what he could do as a hitter down the road in his Hall of Fame career.

He added an additional 1.4 fWAR for the franchise at the plate in 1915, bringing his total value for that season to 3.9.

Ruth went on to play for the Sox through the 1919 season, before eventually being sold to the New York Yankees for $100,000. The rest of his career is history after that.

At the conclusion of his major league career in 1935, Ruth owned a 168.4 fWAR for his batting, which bests Barry Bonds by exactly four wins. He also posted a 12.4 fWAR as a pitcher, bringing his career fWAR to 180.8, the best in major league history by a pretty wide margin.

Ruth, of course, finished with 714 career home runs, which ranks third all-time on the career home run list. There’s a chance he could fall to fourth, if Alex Rodriguez can collect 19 more home runs before he ends his career.

Next: Carl Hubbell K's 5 Consecutive Hall of Famers

The legend of Babe Ruth began 102 years ago, on this date. Perhaps the greatest player of all time has left a huge imprint on the game since his debut.

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