1932 World Series
Encyclopedia
The 1932 World Series was played between the New York Yankees
(American League
) and the Chicago Cubs
(National League
), with the Yankees holding home field advantage. The Yankees swept the Cubs, four games to none. The series was otherwise noteworthy for Babe Ruth's called shot
, for his tenth and last World Series appearance overall, and for the arguments that developed between the two teams. The heated atmosphere started before the series even began.
A record thirteen future Hall of Famers
played in this Series which was also the first to have both teams use numbers on the backs of players shirts.
in Chicago, Illinois
Roughly 50,000 Cubs fans showed up for Game 3, the large crowd made possible by the construction of temporary bleachers in Waveland and Sheffield Avenues. In a prelude of things to come, Ruth and Lou Gehrig
put on an impressive batting display during batting practice. Ruth launched nine balls to the outfield stands while Gehrig hit seven. As reported in the first edition of A Day at the Park, by William Hartel, p. 82, Ruth said while batting: "I'd play for half my salary if I could bat in this dump all the time!"
Cubs starting pitcher
Charlie Root
struggled in the first inning
of Game 3. The first two Yankees reached base when Ruth came to bat and hit a home run into the right-center bleachers to put the Yankees up 3–0. As the existing newsreel footage shows, Gehrig gave Ruth a friendly swat across the fanny as Ruth crossed the plate. Gehrig then hit a home run of his own in the third inning, echoing a homer he had hit at Wrigley while in high school. This put the Yankees up 4–1. The Cubs battled back with two runs in the third and one in the fourth, tying the score at four runs a piece. Joe Judge
, who scored the tying run in the fourth, had doubled to right after Ruth dove in a futile attempt to catch the ball.
What happened in the top of the fifth inning is the stuff of legend. The Series is immortalized in many history books for just that reason. Though Ruth and Gehrig each hit a home run
in the inning (in back-to-back at-bats), it is Ruth’s hit that is the better known. Ruth supposedly predicted his home run
by pointing to the stands prior to a pitch. While it has been confirmed that he pointed somewhere during the at-bat, there has been much debate as to whether Ruth actually "called" the home run, as there is a lack of solid evidence proving exactly what he was pointing at.
in Chicago, Illinois
(A.L.) over Chicago Cubs
(N.L.)
The initial cause of the bad tempers was over former Yankee shortstop
Mark Koenig
. The Cubs picked up Koenig from the Detroit Tigers
via the Mission Reds of the PCL
on April 25, 1932. Despite Koenig's regular-season contributions, the other Cubs players voted him only half a share of their World Series money because he only played in 33 games and was unable to play in the Series due to injury. Some of Koenig's Yankee friends heard of this; as a result, they began to criticize the Cubs players as "cheapskates" in the press. The Yankees felt the Cubs were being "tight" with their money.
Ruth's remarks seemed to set the Cubs players off the most when he called them cheapskates. Adding some spice to the verbal stew was the fact that the Yankees' manager, Joe McCarthy, had previously been fired by the Cubs. When the series started in New York, the Cubs players retaliated at Ruth by calling him fat and washed up along with every obscene name they could think of. Guy Bush
, the Cubs starting pitcher in Game 1, was particularly vocal against Ruth, calling him "nigger
" (a common bench-jockey slam against Ruth due to his German-featured broad nose and thick lips), and this type of "banter" lasted for most of the Series.
), and thus the legend was born. Ruth, ever-aware of his larger-than-life public image, was quick to "confirm" the story once he became aware of it. Conflicting testimony and inconclusive film footage have placed the moment in the realm of baseball legends.
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...
(American League
American League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, or simply the American League , is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league based in the Great Lakes states, which eventually aspired to major...
) and the Chicago Cubs
Chicago Cubs
The Chicago Cubs are a professional baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League. They are one of two Major League clubs based in Chicago . The Cubs are also one of the two remaining charter members of the National...
(National League
National League
The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League , is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league. Founded on February 2, 1876, to replace the National Association of Professional...
), with the Yankees holding home field advantage. The Yankees swept the Cubs, four games to none. The series was otherwise noteworthy for Babe Ruth's called shot
Babe Ruth's Called Shot
Babe Ruth's called shot was the home run hit by Babe Ruth of the New York Yankees in the fifth inning of Game 3 of the 1932 World Series, held on October 1, 1932 at Wrigley Field in Chicago. During the at-bat, Ruth made a pointing gesture, which existing film confirms, but the exact nature of his...
, for his tenth and last World Series appearance overall, and for the arguments that developed between the two teams. The heated atmosphere started before the series even began.
A record thirteen future Hall of Famers
National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum
The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 25 Main Street in Cooperstown, New York, operated by private interests serving as the central point for the study of the history of baseball in the United States and beyond, the display of...
played in this Series which was also the first to have both teams use numbers on the backs of players shirts.
Summary
Game 1
Wednesday, September 28, 1932 at Yankee Stadium (I) in Bronx, New YorkGame 2
Thursday, September 29, 1932 at Yankee Stadium (I) in Bronx, New YorkGame 3
Saturday, October 1, 1932 at Wrigley FieldWrigley Field
Wrigley Field is a baseball stadium in Chicago, Illinois, United States that has served as the home ballpark of the Chicago Cubs since 1916. It was built in 1914 as Weeghman Park for the Chicago Federal League baseball team, the Chicago Whales...
in Chicago, Illinois
Lou Gehrig
Henry Louis "Lou" Gehrig , nicknamed "The Iron Horse" for his durability, was an American Major League Baseball first baseman. He played his entire 17-year baseball career for the New York Yankees . Gehrig set several major league records. He holds the record for most career grand slams...
put on an impressive batting display during batting practice. Ruth launched nine balls to the outfield stands while Gehrig hit seven. As reported in the first edition of A Day at the Park, by William Hartel, p. 82, Ruth said while batting: "I'd play for half my salary if I could bat in this dump all the time!"
Cubs starting pitcher
Starting pitcher
In baseball or softball, a starting pitcher is the pitcher who delivers the first pitch to the first batter of a game. A pitcher who enters the game after the first pitch of the game is a relief pitcher....
Charlie Root
Charlie Root
Charles Henry Root was an American right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball for the Chicago Cubs for sixteen seasons from 1926 through 1941. He holds the club record for games, innings pitched, and career wins with 201....
struggled in the first inning
Inning
Inning is a municipality in the district of Erding in Bavaria in Germany....
of Game 3. The first two Yankees reached base when Ruth came to bat and hit a home run into the right-center bleachers to put the Yankees up 3–0. As the existing newsreel footage shows, Gehrig gave Ruth a friendly swat across the fanny as Ruth crossed the plate. Gehrig then hit a home run of his own in the third inning, echoing a homer he had hit at Wrigley while in high school. This put the Yankees up 4–1. The Cubs battled back with two runs in the third and one in the fourth, tying the score at four runs a piece. Joe Judge
Joe Judge
Joseph Ignatius Judge was an American first baseman in Major League Baseball who played nearly his entire career for the Washington Senators...
, who scored the tying run in the fourth, had doubled to right after Ruth dove in a futile attempt to catch the ball.
What happened in the top of the fifth inning is the stuff of legend. The Series is immortalized in many history books for just that reason. Though Ruth and Gehrig each hit a home run
Home run
In baseball, a home run is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to reach home safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team in the process...
in the inning (in back-to-back at-bats), it is Ruth’s hit that is the better known. Ruth supposedly predicted his home run
Babe Ruth's Called Shot
Babe Ruth's called shot was the home run hit by Babe Ruth of the New York Yankees in the fifth inning of Game 3 of the 1932 World Series, held on October 1, 1932 at Wrigley Field in Chicago. During the at-bat, Ruth made a pointing gesture, which existing film confirms, but the exact nature of his...
by pointing to the stands prior to a pitch. While it has been confirmed that he pointed somewhere during the at-bat, there has been much debate as to whether Ruth actually "called" the home run, as there is a lack of solid evidence proving exactly what he was pointing at.
Game 4
Sunday, October 2, 1932 at Wrigley FieldWrigley Field
Wrigley Field is a baseball stadium in Chicago, Illinois, United States that has served as the home ballpark of the Chicago Cubs since 1916. It was built in 1914 as Weeghman Park for the Chicago Federal League baseball team, the Chicago Whales...
in Chicago, Illinois
Composite box
1932 World Series (4–0): New York YankeesNew York Yankees
The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...
(A.L.) over Chicago Cubs
Chicago Cubs
The Chicago Cubs are a professional baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League. They are one of two Major League clubs based in Chicago . The Cubs are also one of the two remaining charter members of the National...
(N.L.)
The arguments
Bench jockeying, called "trash talk" nowadays, was standard procedure in baseball at that time, with no verbal punches pulled, but the jockeying was said to be taken to new heights (or depths) in this Series, on the grounds of a personal disrespect against a former teammate.The initial cause of the bad tempers was over former Yankee shortstop
Shortstop
Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball fielding position between second and third base. Shortstop is often regarded as the most dynamic defensive position in baseball, because there are more right-handed hitters in baseball than left-handed hitters, and most hitters have a tendency to pull the...
Mark Koenig
Mark Koenig
Mark Anthony Koenig was an American shortstop in Major League Baseball. He played for 12 seasons from 1925–1936. He was the starting shortstop for the New York Yankees 1927 Murderers' Row team, and was the last surviving member of that legendary team...
. The Cubs picked up Koenig from the Detroit Tigers
Detroit Tigers
The Detroit Tigers are a Major League Baseball team located in Detroit, Michigan. One of the American League's eight charter franchises, the club was founded in Detroit in as part of the Western League. The Tigers have won four World Series championships and have won the American League pennant...
via the Mission Reds of the PCL
Pacific Coast League
The Pacific Coast League is a minor-league baseball league operating in the Western, Midwestern and Southeastern United States. Along with the International League and the Mexican League, it is one of three leagues playing at the Triple-A level, which is one step below Major League Baseball.The...
on April 25, 1932. Despite Koenig's regular-season contributions, the other Cubs players voted him only half a share of their World Series money because he only played in 33 games and was unable to play in the Series due to injury. Some of Koenig's Yankee friends heard of this; as a result, they began to criticize the Cubs players as "cheapskates" in the press. The Yankees felt the Cubs were being "tight" with their money.
Ruth's remarks seemed to set the Cubs players off the most when he called them cheapskates. Adding some spice to the verbal stew was the fact that the Yankees' manager, Joe McCarthy, had previously been fired by the Cubs. When the series started in New York, the Cubs players retaliated at Ruth by calling him fat and washed up along with every obscene name they could think of. Guy Bush
Guy Bush
Guy Terrell Bush was an American right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball, nicknamed the Mississippi Mudcat....
, the Cubs starting pitcher in Game 1, was particularly vocal against Ruth, calling him "nigger
Nigger
Nigger is a noun in the English language, most notable for its usage in a pejorative context to refer to black people , and also as an informal slang term, among other contexts. It is a common ethnic slur...
" (a common bench-jockey slam against Ruth due to his German-featured broad nose and thick lips), and this type of "banter" lasted for most of the Series.
The Called Shot
Babe Ruth's Called Shot refers to the home run hit by Babe Ruth in the fifth inning of Game 3. During the at-bat, Ruth made a pointing gesture, which existing film confirms, but the exact nature of his gesture is ambiguous. Although neither fully confirmed nor refuted, the story goes that Ruth pointed to the center field bleachers during the at-bat. It was supposedly a declaration that he would hit a home run to this part of the park. On the next pitch, he hit a "Ruthian" home run to deep center field, past the flagpole and into the temporary seating in the streets, the flight of the ball estimated at nearly 500 feet. A few reporters later wrote that Ruth had "called his shot" (a reference to pocket billiardsPocket billiards
Pool, also more formally known as pocket billiards or pool billiards , is the family of cue sports and games played on a pool table having six receptacles called pockets along the , into which balls are deposited as the main goal of play. Popular versions include eight-ball and nine-ball...
), and thus the legend was born. Ruth, ever-aware of his larger-than-life public image, was quick to "confirm" the story once he became aware of it. Conflicting testimony and inconclusive film footage have placed the moment in the realm of baseball legends.