The Babe Ruth Story is a 1948 American biographical film about professional baseball player Babe Ruth (1895–1948), who achieved fame as a slugging outfielder for the New York Yankees . However, most of the film, except for the basic details of Ruth's life and career achievements, was fictionalized. Directed by Roy Del Ruth , the film stars William Bendix (New York Yankee batboy in the 1920s) as the ballplayer and Claire Trevor as his wife Claire Merritt Hodgson . The film initially received positive reviews, however, modern-day critics faulted the film's heavy-handedness and direction, and it is said by many to be one of the worst films ever made .
113-594: In 1906, at the Baltimore Waterfront, 11-year-old George Herman Ruth Jr. is taken away from his abusive father by Brother Matthias and goes to St. Mary's. When George is 18, his incredible baseball talent gets him hired to play for the Baltimore Orioles , and during the interview, he gets his "Babe" nickname. Babe becomes a successful baseball player and is soon sold off to play for the Boston Red Sox . After
226-401: A "2–3" format, first two games were played at the home of the team who did not have home-field advantage. Then the last three games were played at the home of the team, with home-field advantage. Thus the first two games were played at Wrigley Field and the next three at the home of their opponents, San Diego. A common and unfounded myth is that since Wrigley Field did not have lights at that time
339-446: A bad game, Babe wonders what went wrong at a bar, until Claire Hodgson tells him that when he pitches his curveball he sticks out his tongue. He continues his success, landing a new $ 10,000 contract. He finds Claire, but she gives him the cold shoulder. During one game, Denny, a sick paralyzed child, and his father watch Babe Ruth play. When Babe says "Hiya, keed" to the boy, the child is miraculously cured and stands up. Babe soon becomes
452-439: A controversial figure in the clubhouse after his corked-bat incident , Sosa's actions alienated much of his once strong fan base as well as the few teammates still on good terms with him, to the point where his boombox was reportedly smashed after he left to signify the end of an era. The disappointing season also saw fans start to become frustrated with the constant injuries to ace pitchers Mark Prior and Kerry Wood. Additionally,
565-606: A double-play combination by Franklin P. Adams ' poem " Baseball's Sad Lexicon ". The poem first appeared in the July 18, 1910, edition of the New York Evening Mail . Mordecai "Three-Finger" Brown , Jack Taylor , Ed Reulbach , Jack Pfiester , and Orval Overall were several key pitchers for the Cubs during this time period. With Chance acting as player-manager from 1905 to 1912, the Cubs won four pennants and two World Series titles over
678-462: A down-to-the-wire Wild Card chase with the San Francisco Giants , Chicago and San Francisco ended the regular season tied, and thus squared off in a one-game playoff at Wrigley Field. Third baseman Gary Gaetti hit the eventual game-winning homer in the playoff game. The win propelled the Cubs into the postseason for the first time since 1989 with a 90–73 regular-season record. Unfortunately,
791-459: A fast start in 1999, they collapsed again (starting with being swept at the hands of the cross-town White Sox in mid-June) and finished in the bottom of the division for the next two seasons. Despite losing fan favorite Grace to free agency and the lack of production from newcomer Todd Hundley , skipper Don Baylor 's Cubs put together a good season in 2001. The season started with Mack Newton being brought in to preach "positive thinking". One of
904-453: A fight with one of the gamblers who tried to make him throw the game and gets arrested. Soon, he decides to play Santa Claus at a children's hospital, where he runs into Claire again, visiting her nephew. She tells him that his actions affect the children of America, and Babe decides to keep that in mind. Miller Huggins , the same man who suspended Babe, fights to bring him back to the Yankees as
1017-410: A film that will sustain audience interest," with a performance by Bendix that had "a lot of heart." Harrison's Reports called it "a highly successful picture, from the box-office as well as the entertainment point of view," adding that Bendix "handles his part with skill and restraint," and that "few people will come out of the theatre with dry eyes." BoxOffice also ran a positive review, praising
1130-536: A five-year span. Although they fell to the "Hitless Wonders" White Sox in the 1906 World Series , the Cubs recorded a record 116 victories and the best winning percentage (.763) in Major League history. With mostly the same roster, Chicago won back-to-back World Series championships in 1907 and 1908 , becoming the first Major League club to play three times in the Fall Classic and the first to win it twice. However,
1243-577: A majority interest in the Cubs in 2009, ending the Tribune years. Apparently handcuffed by the Tribune's bankruptcy and the sale of the club to the Ricketts siblings, led by chairman Thomas S. Ricketts , the Cubs ' quest for a NL Central three-peat started with notice that there would be less invested into contracts than in previous years. Chicago engaged St. Louis in a see-saw battle for first place into August 2009, but
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#17328517380671356-738: A member club of the National League (NL) Central Division . The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field , which is located on Chicago's North Side . They are one of two major league teams based in Chicago, alongside the American League (AL)’s Chicago White Sox . The Cubs, first known as the White Stockings, were a founding member of the NL in 1876 , becoming the Chicago Cubs in 1903 . Throughout
1469-458: A minor leaguer. Reliever Tim Stoddard (10–6 3.82, 7 saves) was acquired the same day for a minor leaguer; veteran pitcher Ferguson Jenkins was released. The team's commitment to contend was complete when Green made a midseason deal on June 15 to shore up the starting rotation due to injuries to Rick Reuschel (5–5) and Sanderson. The deal brought 1979 NL Rookie of the Year pitcher Rick Sutcliffe from
1582-498: A more colorful American figure than the Babe for motion picture documentation and it would be difficult to do a worse job with him than has been done here." The Monthly Film Bulletin of Britain wrote: "This film illustrates the American habit of canonizing baseball players, for apparently Babe Ruth did not only perform remarkable feats on the field, but could also perform miracles by curing
1695-626: A no-hitter against the Astros , and six days later the team clinched by beating St. Louis at Wrigley. The club ended the season with a 97–64 record and met Los Angeles in the NLDS . The heavily favored Cubs took an early lead in Game 1, but James Loney 's grand slam off Ryan Dempster changed the series' momentum. Chicago committed numerous critical errors and were outscored 20–6 in a Dodger sweep, which provided yet another sudden ending. The Ricketts family acquired
1808-496: A pitcher's duel with D-Backs ace Brandon Webb , to "....save Zambrano for (a potential) Game 4." The Cubs, however, were unable to come through, losing the first game and eventually stranding over 30 baserunners in a three-game Arizona sweep. The Tribune company, in financial distress, was acquired by real-estate mogul Sam Zell in December 2007. This acquisition included the Cubs. However, Zell did not take an active part in running
1921-526: A player and manager. His departure after 22 years led local newspaper reporters to refer to the Colts as the "Orphans". After the 1900 season , the American Base-Ball League formed as a rival professional league. The club's old White Stockings nickname (eventually shortened to White Sox) was adopted by a new American League neighbor to the south . In 1902, Spalding, who by this time had revamped
2034-481: A player for the New York Yankees . During one game, he accidentally hurts a dog and decides to take the dog and the dog's young owner to the hospital. After Babe argues with the doctors that a dog is the same as a human, the dog is treated, but because Babe left a game to do this, he gets suspended from the Yankees. A depressed Babe Ruth finds himself at a bar, and amidst the crowd giving off negative vibes, he starts
2147-476: A positive springboard since the Cubs were to play a crucial series with the Mets the next day. But Willie Stargell drilled a two-out, two-strike pitch from the Cubs' ace reliever, Phil Regan, onto Sheffield Avenue to tie the score in the top of the ninth. The Cubs would lose 7–5 in extra innings.[6] Burdened by a four-game losing streak, the Cubs traveled to Shea Stadium for a short two-game set. The Mets won both games, and
2260-465: A record 120 games 7 years earlier), would go on to win the World Series. The Cubs, despite a respectable 92–70 record, would be remembered for having lost a remarkable 17½ games in the standings to the Mets in the last quarter of the season. Following the 1969 season, the club posted winning records for the next few seasons, but no playoff action. After the core players of those teams started to move on,
2373-526: A rough start, which included a brawl between Michael Barrett and Carlos Zambrano , the Cubs overcame the Milwaukee Brewers , who had led the division for most of the season. The Cubs traded Barrett to the Padres, and later acquired catcher Jason Kendall from Oakland. Kendall was highly successful with his management of the pitching rotation and helped at the plate as well. By September, Geovany Soto became
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#17328517380672486-631: A serious contender for the National League pennant. In 2006, the bottom fell out as the Cubs finished 66–96, last in the National League Central . After finishing last in the NL Central with 66 wins in 2006, the Cubs re-tooled and went from "worst to first" in 2007. In the offseason they signed Alfonso Soriano to a contract at eight years for $ 136 million, and replaced manager Dusty Baker with fiery veteran manager Lou Piniella . After
2599-450: A somber note with the death of broadcaster Harry Caray . After the retirement of Sandberg and the trade of Dunston, the Cubs had holes to fill, and the signing of Henry Rodríguez to bat cleanup provided protection for Sammy Sosa in the lineup, as Rodriguez slugged 31 round-trippers in his first season in Chicago. Kevin Tapani led the club with a career-high 19 wins while Rod Beck anchored
2712-500: A strong bullpen and Mark Grace turned in one of his best seasons. The Cubs were swamped by media attention in 1998, and the team's two biggest headliners were Sosa and rookie flamethrower Kerry Wood . Wood's signature performance was one-hitting the Houston Astros , a game in which he tied the major league record of 20 strikeouts in nine innings. His torrid strikeout numbers earned Wood the nickname "Kid K", and ultimately earned him
2825-556: A strong top-to-bottom rotation, and Smith was one of the top closers in the game. The shift in the Cubs' fortunes was characterized June 23 on the "NBC Saturday Game of the Week" contest against the St. Louis Cardinals; it has since been dubbed simply " The Sandberg Game ". With the nation watching and Wrigley Field packed, Sandberg emerged as a superstar with not one, but two game-tying home runs against Cardinals closer Bruce Sutter . With his shots in
2938-482: A winning record (83–78) for the third consecutive season, the first time the club had done so since 1972 , and a new era of ownership under the Ricketts family was approved by MLB owners in early October. Rookie Starlin Castro debuted in early May (2010) as the starting shortstop. The club played poorly in the early season, finding themselves 10 games under .500 at the end of June. In addition, long-time ace Carlos Zambrano
3051-428: Is hard to accept the presentation of a great, mawkish, noble-spirited buffoon which William Bendix gives in this picture as a reasonable facsimile of the Babe." Crowther also found it "a little incongruous to see a picture about a baseball star containing no more than a minimum of action on a playing field—and most of that studio action which is patently phony and absurd." John McCarten of The New Yorker also panned
3164-503: Is known as the "June Swoon". Again, the Cubs' unusually high number of day games is often pointed to as one reason for the team's inconsistent late-season play. Wrigley died in 1977. The Wrigley family sold the team to the Chicago Tribune for $ 20.5 million in 1981, ending the family's 65-year relationship with the Cubs. After over a dozen more subpar seasons, in 1981 the Cubs hired GM Dallas Green from Philadelphia to turn around
3277-422: The 1918 World Series , Boston's last Series championship until 2004. Beginning in 1916, Bill Wrigley of chewing-gum fame acquired an increasing quantity of stock in the Cubs and by 1921, he was the majority owner. Meanwhile, Bill Veeck, Sr. began his tenure as team president in 1919. Veeck would hold that post throughout the 1920s and into the 1930s. The management team of Wrigley and Veeck came to be known as
3390-569: The Baltimore Orioles , in addition to the three Major League Baseball teams that have used the name (the first of which played in the American Association in 1882 to 1891, then joined the National League from 1892 to 1899, the second being the American League charter franchise which played for two seasons in 1901 and 1902, and the modern AL team since April 1954.) "Orioles" is a traditional name for baseball clubs in Baltimore, after
3503-813: The Chicago Cubs , inaccurately. The production was shot on location, primarily at Wrigley Field in Chicago . Other locations included St. Mary's Industrial School for Boys in Baltimore , Fenway Park in Boston , Yankee Stadium in New York City , Forbes Field in Pittsburgh , and Comiskey Park in Chicago. The film was rushed to release following news of Ruth's declining health and makes no mention whatsoever of Ruth's first wife, Helen. Despite his condition, Ruth briefly visited
The Babe Ruth Story - Misplaced Pages Continue
3616-642: The Chicago Whales of the short-lived Federal League . As principal owners, the pair moved the club from the West Side Grounds to the much newer Weeghman Park , which had been constructed for the Whales only two years earlier, where they remain to this day. The Cubs responded by winning a pennant in the war-shortened season of 1918, where they played a part in another team's curse : the Boston Red Sox defeated Grover Cleveland Alexander 's Cubs four games to two in
3729-708: The Cy Young Award . The Cubs 1984 starting lineup was very strong. It consisted of LF Matthews (.291 14–82 101 runs 17 SB), C Jody Davis (.256 19–94), RF Keith Moreland (.279 16–80), SS Larry Bowa (.223 10 SB), 1B Leon "Bull" Durham (.279 23–96 16SB), CF Dernier (.278 45 SB), 3B Ron Cey (.240 25–97), Closer Lee Smith (9–7 3.65 33 saves) and 1984 NL MVP Ryne Sandberg (.314 19–84 114 runs, 19 triples, 32 SB). Reserve players Hebner, Thad Bosley , Henry Cotto , Hassey and Dave Owen produced exciting moments. The bullpen depth of Rich Bordi , George Frazier , Warren Brusstar and Dickie Noles did their job in getting
3842-600: The Detroit Tigers in the 1908 World Series . After losing an extra-inning game in Game 1, the Cubs rallied and took a three-games-to-one lead over the Wild Card Florida Marlins in the National League Championship Series . Florida shut the Cubs out in Game 5, but the Cubs returned home to Wrigley Field with young pitcher Mark Prior to lead the Cubs in Game 6 as they took a 3–0 lead into
3955-627: The Philadelphia Phillies cut the lead to two by the All-star break, as the Cubs sat 19 games over .500, but they swooned late in the season, going 20–40 after July 31. The Cubs finished in fourth place at 81–81, while Philadelphia surged, finishing with 101 wins. The following two seasons also saw the Cubs get off to a fast start, as the team rallied to over 10 games above .500 well into both seasons, only to again wear down and play poorly later on, and ultimately settling back to mediocrity. This trait
4068-592: The Salt Lake City Trappers won 29 in 1987 ). The Orioles won the League by 20 games over the second place team, and had a home record of 70 wins and 18 losses. Despite their impressive record, however, they lost the " Little World Series " to the American Association's champion Louisville Colonels , 4 games to 1. The Orioles actually led the fourth game, 12–4, but a riot broke out among the Louisville home crowd in
4181-630: The Yankees featured Babe Ruth's " called shot " at Wrigley Field in game three. There were some historic moments for the Cubs as well; In 1930, Hack Wilson , one of the top home run hitters in the game, had one of the most impressive seasons in MLB history, hitting 56 home runs and establishing the current runs-batted-in record of 191. That 1930 club, which boasted six eventual hall of fame members (Wilson, Gabby Hartnett , Rogers Hornsby , George "High Pockets" Kelly , Kiki Cuyler and manager Joe McCarthy ) established
4294-402: The state bird of Maryland , with the colors of black and orange/gold/yellow. It was used by major league teams representing the city from 1882 through 1899 in the old American Association and the original National League two decades after its founding in 1876, and by a charter team franchise member of the new American League from 1901 through 1902. The original American League franchise
4407-512: The "Double-Bills". Near the end of the first decade of the double-Bills' guidance, the Cubs won the NL Pennant in 1929 and then achieved the unusual feat of winning a pennant every three years, following up the 1929 flag with league titles in 1932, 1935, and 1938. Unfortunately, their success did not extend to the Fall Classic , as they fell to their AL rivals each time. The '32 series against
4520-750: The 1983 World Series the Baltimore Orioles of the AL had home-field advantage. In the NLCS , the Cubs easily won the first two games at Wrigley Field against the San Diego Padres . The Padres were the winners of the Western Division with Steve Garvey , Tony Gwynn , Eric Show , Goose Gossage and Alan Wiggins . With wins of 13–0 and 4–2, the Cubs needed to win only one game of the next three in San Diego to make it to
4633-534: The 1998 NL Rookie of the Year award. Sosa caught fire in June, hitting a major league record 20 home runs in the month, and his home run race with Cardinal's slugger Mark McGwire transformed the pair into international superstars in a matter of weeks. McGwire finished the season with a new major league record of 70 home runs, but Sosa's .308 average and 66 homers earned him the National League MVP Award . After
The Babe Ruth Story - Misplaced Pages Continue
4746-444: The 2004 season led to the departure of popular commentator Steve Stone , who had become increasingly critical of management during broadcasts and was verbally attacked by reliever Kent Mercker . Things were no better in 2005 , despite a career year from first baseman Derrek Lee and the emergence of closer Ryan Dempster . The club struggled and suffered more key injuries, only managing to win 79 games after being picked by many to be
4859-402: The 8th inning. It was at this point when a now-infamous incident took place. Several spectators attempted to catch a foul ball off the bat of Luis Castillo . A Chicago Cubs fan by the name of Steve Bartman , of Northbrook, Illinois, reached for the ball and deflected it away from the glove of Moisés Alou for the second out of the eighth inning. Alou reacted angrily toward the stands and after
4972-449: The 9th and 10th innings, Wrigley Field erupted and Sandberg set the stage for a comeback win that cemented the Cubs as the team to beat in the East. No one would catch them. In early August the Cubs swept the Mets in a 4-game home series that further distanced them from the pack. An infamous Keith Moreland- Ed Lynch fight erupted after Lynch hit Moreland with a pitch, perhaps forgetting Moreland
5085-542: The Anson-led Chicago Base Ball Club won six National League pennants between 1876 and 1886. By 1890 , the team had become known the Chicago Colts , or sometimes "Anson's Colts", referring to Cap's influence within the club. Anson was the first player in history credited with 3,000 career hits . In 1897, after a disappointing record of 59–73 and a ninth-place finish, Anson was released by the club as both
5198-479: The Braves and is fired from anything related to baseball. Later, Babe complains of neck pain and soon learns that he is dying of throat cancer. The news of this leads fans to send letters telling Babe that they care. The doctors decide to try a treatment on Babe with a chance that he'll survive. As Babe is taken to surgery, the narrator gives words of encouragement to baseball fans, crediting Babe Ruth for America's love of
5311-454: The Cardinals for pitcher Ernie Broglio (who won only seven games over the next three seasons), hampered on-field performance. The late-1960s brought hope of a renaissance, with third baseman Ron Santo , pitcher Ferguson Jenkins , and outfielder Billy Williams joining Banks. After losing a dismal 103 games in 1966, the Cubs brought home consecutive winning records in '67 and '68 , marking
5424-857: The Cardinals played to a torrid 20–6 pace that month, designating their rivals to battle in the Wild Card race, from which they were eliminated in the season's final week. The Cubs were plagued by injuries in 2009, and were only able to field their Opening Day starting lineup three times the entire season. Third baseman Aramis Ramírez injured his throwing shoulder in an early May game against the Milwaukee Brewers, sidelining him until early July and forcing journeyman players like Mike Fontenot and Aaron Miles into more prominent roles. Additionally, key players like Derrek Lee (who still managed to hit .306 with 35 home runs and 111 RBI that season), Alfonso Soriano, and Geovany Soto also nursed nagging injuries. The Cubs posted
5537-613: The Cleveland Indians. Joe Carter (who was with the Triple-A Iowa Cubs at the time) and right fielder Mel Hall were sent to Cleveland for Sutcliffe and back-up catcher Ron Hassey (.333 with Cubs in 1984). Sutcliffe (5–5 with the Indians) immediately joined Sanderson (8–5 3.14), Eckersley (10–8 3.03), Steve Trout (13–7 3.41) and Dick Ruthven (6–10 5.04) in the starting rotation. Sutcliffe proceeded to go 16–1 for Cubs and capture
5650-459: The Cubs again. They led the Wild Card by 1.5 games over the San Francisco Giants and the Houston Astros on September 25. On that day, both teams lost, giving the Cubs a chance at increasing the lead to 2.5 games with only eight games remaining in the season, but reliever LaTroy Hawkins blew a save to the New York Mets , and the Cubs lost the game in extra innings. The defeat seemingly deflated
5763-503: The Cubs led the division down the stretch. Chicago halted the St. Louis Cardinals ' run to the playoffs by taking four of five games from the Cardinals at Wrigley Field in early September, after which they won their first division title in 14 years. They then went on to defeat the Atlanta Braves in a dramatic five-game Division Series , the franchise's first postseason series win since beating
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#17328517380675876-489: The Cubs left New York with a record of 84–58 just 1⁄2 game in front. More of the same followed in Philadelphia, as a 99 loss Phillies team nonetheless defeated the Cubs twice, to extend Chicago's losing streak to eight games. In a key play in the second game, on September 11, Cubs starter Dick Selma threw a surprise pickoff attempt to third baseman Ron Santo, who was nowhere near the bag or the ball. Selma's throwing error opened
5989-512: The Cubs would not win another World Series until 2016 ; this remains the longest championship drought in North American professional sports. The next season, veteran catcher Johnny Kling left the team to become a professional pocket billiards player. Some historians think Kling's absence was significant enough to prevent the Cubs from also winning a third straight title in 1909, as they finished 6 games out of first place. When Kling returned
6102-662: The Eastern League pennant in 1908 . This E.L./I.L. Orioles team played at the old American League Park (a.k.a. Oriole Park) at the southwest corner of Greenmount Avenue and 29th Street in the Waverly neighborhood of northeast Baltimore. The 1914 season featured the professional debut of local son, George Herman "Babe" Ruth , but competition from the Baltimore Terrapins of the new Federal League challenge for major league status, with their more modern steel-beamed ballpark across
6215-543: The Gloamin' ". After the "Double-Bills" (Wrigley and Veeck) died in 1932 and 1933 respectively, P.K. Wrigley , son of Bill Wrigley, took over as majority owner. He was unable to extend his father's baseball success beyond 1938, and the Cubs slipped into years of mediocrity, although the Wrigley family would retain control of the team until 1981. The Cubs enjoyed one more pennant at the close of World War II, finishing 98–56. Due to
6328-450: The League on July 4 of that year, when their home wooden and steel beamed stadium, Oriole Park (formerly Terrapin Park of 1914), burned down. Even after relocating several blocks northwest to the old 1922 football bowl of Municipal Stadium on 33rd Street Boulevard (also known as "Baltimore Stadium"), the team seemed to have a hard time recovering from that loss, playing lackluster ball through
6441-568: The National League decided to give the home field advantage to the winner of the NL West. In fact, home-field advantage had rotated between the winners of the East and West since 1969 when the league expanded. In even-numbered years, the NL West had home-field advantage. In odd-numbered years, the NL East had home-field advantage. Since the NL East winners had had home-field advantage in 1983, the NL West winners were entitled to it. The confusion may stem from
6554-520: The Padres win the game 6–3, with a 4-run 7th inning and keep Chicago out of the 1984 World Series against the Detroit Tigers . The loss ended a spectacular season for the Cubs, one that brought alive a slumbering franchise and made the Cubs relevant for a whole new generation of Cubs fans. The Padres would be defeated in 5 games by Sparky Anderson's Tigers in the World Series. The 1985 season brought high hopes. The club started out well, going 35–19 through mid-June, but injuries to Sutcliffe and others in
6667-435: The World Series. After being beaten in Game 3 7–1, the Cubs lost Game 4 when Smith, with the game tied 5–5, allowed a game-winning home run to Garvey in the bottom of the ninth inning. In Game 5 the Cubs took a 3–0 lead into the 6th inning, and a 3–2 lead into the seventh with Sutcliffe (who won the Cy Young Award that year) still on the mound. Then, Leon Durham had a sharp grounder go under his glove. This critical error helped
6780-549: The Year Runner-Up Dwight Smith. The Cubs won the NL East once again that season winning 93 games. This time the Cubs met the San Francisco Giants in the NLCS . After splitting the first two games at home, the Cubs headed to the Bay Area, where despite holding a lead at some point in each of the next three games, bullpen meltdowns and managerial blunders ultimately led to three straight losses. The Cubs could not overcome
6893-691: The baseball franchise, instead concentrating on putting together a deal to sell it. The Cubs successfully defended their National League Central title in 2008 , going to the postseason in consecutive years for the first time since 1906–08. The offseason was dominated by three months of unsuccessful trade talks with the Orioles involving 2B Brian Roberts , as well as the signing of Chunichi Dragons star Kosuke Fukudome . The team recorded their 10,000th win in April, while establishing an early division lead. Reed Johnson and Jim Edmonds were added early on and Rich Harden
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#17328517380677006-470: The bats went cold in October, as manager Jim Riggleman 's club batted .183 and scored only four runs en route to being swept by Atlanta in the National League Division Series . The home run chase between Sosa, McGwire and Ken Griffey Jr. helped professional baseball to bring in a new crop of fans as well as bringing back some fans who had been disillusioned by the 1994 strike . The Cubs retained many players who experienced career years in 1998, but, after
7119-590: The biggest stories of the season transpired as the club made a midseason deal for Fred McGriff , which was drawn out for nearly a month as McGriff debated waiving his no-trade clause . The Cubs led the wild card race by 2.5 games in early September, but crumbled when Preston Wilson hit a three-run walk-off homer off of closer Tom "Flash" Gordon , which halted the team's momentum. The team was unable to make another serious charge, and finished at 88–74, five games behind both Houston and St. Louis , who tied for first. Sosa had perhaps his finest season and Jon Lieber led
7232-457: The boy. During the game, Babe does exactly that, and the boy hears the news and starts to get better. Babe retires from the Yankees at the age of 41, and takes a management position with the Boston Braves , even though they want him to play in the games despite his age. During one game, Babe gets stressed out and can't continue playing, and retires from baseball after that game. Sadly, this means he goes off contract by retiring during his time with
7345-399: The chagrin of the packed stadium, Cubs shortstop Alex Gonzalez misplayed an inning-ending double play, loading the bases. The error would lead to eight Florida runs and a Marlins victory. Despite sending Kerry Wood to the mound and holding a lead twice, the Cubs ultimately dropped Game 7, and failed to reach the World Series . The "Steve Bartman incident" was seen as the "first domino" in
7458-444: The club's history, the Cubs have played in a total of 11 World Series. The 1906 Cubs won 116 games, finishing 116–36 and posting a modern-era record winning percentage of .763, before losing the World Series to the Chicago White Sox ("The Hitless Wonders") by four games to two. The Cubs won back-to-back World Series championships in 1907 and 1908 , becoming the first major league team to play in three consecutive World Series, and
7571-440: The current team batting average record of .309. In 1935 the Cubs claimed the pennant in thrilling fashion, winning a record 21 games in a row in September. The '38 club saw Dizzy Dean lead the team's pitching staff and provided a historic moment when they won a crucial late-season game at Wrigley Field over the Pittsburgh Pirates with a walk-off home run by Gabby Hartnett, which became known in baseball lore as " The Homer in
7684-485: The earlier Orioles team in 1914), this time as the Richmond Virginians from 1954 to 1964, later relocating as today's Toledo Mud Hens franchise in northwest Ohio since 1965. The Orioles won the Governors' Cup , the championship of the International League 2 times, and played in the Little World Series 5 times. Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago . The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as
7797-447: The efforts of Will Clark, whose home run off Maddux, just after a managerial visit to the mound, led Maddux to think Clark knew what pitch was coming. Afterward, Maddux would speak into his glove during any mound conversation, beginning what is a norm today. Mark Grace was 11–17 in the series with 8 RBI. Eventually, the Giants lost to the " Bash Brothers " and the Oakland A's in the famous " Earthquake Series ". The 1998 season began on
7910-416: The fact that Major League Baseball did decide that, should the Cubs make it to the World Series, the American League winner would have home-field advantage. At the time home field advantage was rotated between each league. Odd-numbered years the AL had home-field advantage. Even-numbered years the NL had home-field advantage. In the 1982 World Series the St. Louis Cardinals of the NL had home-field advantage. In
8023-480: The film "stands as possibly the worst movie ever made". The film has been called one of the worst sports films ever by Newsday and The A.V. Club , and called one of the worst biopics by Moviefone and Spike . Michael Sauter included it in his book The Worst Movies of All Time , and Leonard Maltin called it "perfectly dreadful". Baltimore Orioles (minor league) The city of Baltimore, Maryland , has been home to two Minor League Baseball teams called
8136-471: The film for its "great warmth and its constant down-to-earth humanness" with "much to appeal to every taste and age," and calling Bendix's portrayal of Ruth "flawless." Shirley Povich of The Washington Post called Bendix "a believable Babe Ruth who, saddled with some of the worst lines and situations ever handed an actor, waded smartly through the mess and gave the screen its best baseball picture ... Hollywood didn't have to take all that license with it, but
8249-547: The film, calling it "soggy with bathos " and writing that Bendix "handles a bat as if it were as hard to manipulate as a barrel stave. Even with a putty nose, Mr. Bendix resembles Mr. Ruth not at all, and he certainly does the hitter an injustice by representing him as a kind of Neanderthal fellow." Otis Guernsey Jr. of the New York Herald Tribune wrote that the movie "has been sentimentalized out of all possibility of stimulating film biography. It would be hard to find
8362-406: The final 37 games of the year. Despite being well out of playoff contention the Cubs went 24–13 under Quade, the best record in baseball during that 37 game stretch, earning Quade the manager position going forward on October 19. On December 3, 2010, Cubs broadcaster and former third baseman, Ron Santo , died due to complications from bladder cancer and diabetes. He spent 13 seasons as a player with
8475-526: The first team to win that many games and went on a championship spree, seldom seen in major or minor league baseball ever since. Featuring another future Hall-of-Fame pitcher in Lefty Grove , the Orioles improved on that in 1920 by winning 110 games, including the last 25 of the season. In 1921 , the Orioles won 27 straight games (a record for consecutive victories by a minor league team that would stand until
8588-414: The first time a Cub team had accomplished that feat in over two decades. In 1969 the Cubs, managed by Leo Durocher , built a substantial lead in the newly created National League Eastern Division by mid-August. Ken Holtzman pitched a no-hitter on August 19, and the division lead grew to 8 1 ⁄ 2 games over the St. Louis Cardinals and by 9 1 ⁄ 2 games over the New York Mets . After
8701-546: The first to win it twice. Most recently, the Cubs won the 2016 National League Championship Series and 2016 World Series , which ended a 71-year National League pennant drought and a 108-year World Series championship drought, both of which are record droughts in Major League Baseball . The 108-year drought was also the longest such occurrence in all major sports leagues in the United States and Canada . Since
8814-435: The following year, but this was only good enough for third place. In the following two decades, the Cubs played mostly forgettable baseball, finishing among the worst teams in the National League on an almost annual basis. From 1947 to 1966, they only notched one winning season. Longtime infielder-manager Phil Cavarretta , who had been a key player during the 1945 season, was fired during spring training in 1954 after admitting
8927-634: The franchise has played the most games in MLB history, with an all-time regular season record of 11,327–10,767–161 (.513). The Cubs began in 1870 as the Chicago White Stockings , playing their home games at West Side Grounds . Six years later, they joined the National League (NL) as a charter member. In the runup to their NL debut, owner William Hulbert signed various star players, such as pitcher Albert Spalding and infielders Ross Barnes , Deacon White , and Adrian "Cap" Anson . The White Stockings quickly established themselves as one of
9040-441: The franchise. Green had managed the 1980 Phillies to the World Series title. One of his early GM moves brought in a young Phillies minor-league 3rd baseman named Ryne Sandberg, along with Larry Bowa for Iván DeJesús. The 1983 Cubs had finished 71–91 under Lee Elia, who was fired before the season ended by Green. Green continued the culture of change and overhauled the Cubs roster, front-office and coaching staff prior to 1984. Jim Frey
9153-464: The full-time starter behind the plate, replacing the veteran Kendall. Winning streaks in June and July, coupled with a pair of dramatic, late-inning wins against the Reds , led to the Cubs ultimately clinching the NL Central with a record of 85–77. They met Arizona in the NLDS , but controversy followed as Piniella, in a move that has since come under scrutiny, pulled Carlos Zambrano after the sixth inning of
9266-430: The game of September 2, the Cubs record was 84–52 with the Mets in second place at 77–55. But then a losing streak began just as a Mets winning streak was beginning. The Cubs lost the final game of a series at Cincinnati, then came home to play the resurgent Pittsburgh Pirates (who would finish in third place). After losing the first two games by scores of 9–2 and 13–4, the Cubs led going into the ninth inning. A win would be
9379-427: The game stated that he would have caught the ball. Alou at one point recanted, saying he would not have been able to make the play, but later said this was just an attempt to make Bartman feel better and believing the whole incident should be forgotten. Interference was not called on the play, as the ball was ruled to be on the spectator side of the wall. Castillo was eventually walked by Prior. Two batters later, and to
9492-544: The game to Smith or Stoddard. At the top of the order, Dernier and Sandberg were exciting, aptly coined "the Daily Double" by Harry Caray . With strong defense – Dernier CF and Sandberg 2B, won the NL Gold Glove - solid pitching and clutch hitting, the Cubs were a well-balanced team. Following the "Daily Double", Matthews, Durham, Cey, Moreland and Davis gave the Cubs an order with no gaps to pitch around. Sutcliffe anchored
9605-424: The game's first true superstar. In 1885 and 1886, after winning NL pennants, the White Stockings met the champions of the short-lived American Association in that era's version of a World Series. Both seasons resulted in matchups with the St. Louis Brown Stockings ; the clubs tied in 1885 and St. Louis won in 1886. This was the genesis of what would eventually become one of the greatest rivalries in sports. In all,
9718-405: The gates to a Phillies rally. After that second Philly loss, the Cubs were 84–60 and the Mets had pulled ahead at 85–57. The Mets would not look back. The Cubs' eight-game losing streak finally ended the next day in St. Louis, but the Mets were in the midst of a ten-game winning streak, and the Cubs, wilting from team fatigue, generally deteriorated in all phases of the game.[1] The Mets (who had lost
9831-573: The league championship again, only to lose the "Junior World Series" to the Columbus Red Birds of Ohio, four games to one. In 2001, the Orioles teams of 1919, 1920, 1921, 1922, 1923, and 1924 were recognized as being among the 100 greatest minor league teams of all time . After the 1953 season, the St. Louis Browns moved to Baltimore and took the name of the Baltimore Orioles. The last minor league/International League Orioles team (of 1916–1953) re-located to Richmond (coincidentally just as had
9944-512: The new league's top teams. Spalding won forty-seven games and Barnes led the league in hitting at .429 as Chicago won the first National League pennant , which at the time was the game's top prize. After back-to-back pennants in 1880 and 1881, Hulbert died, and Spalding, who had retired from playing to start Spalding sporting goods, assumed ownership of the club. The White Stockings, with Anson acting as player-manager, captured their third consecutive pennant in 1882, and Anson established himself as
10057-479: The next year, the Cubs won the pennant again, but lost to the Philadelphia Athletics in the 1910 World Series . In 1914, advertising executive Albert Lasker obtained a large block of the club's shares and before the 1916 season assumed majority ownership of the franchise. Lasker brought in a wealthy partner, Charles Weeghman , the proprietor of a popular chain of lunch counters who had previously owned
10170-408: The nice thing is that the story of Ruth is too powerful for even Hollywood to mess up more than a trifle." Negative reviews cited the film's moments of heavy-handedness, lack of good baseball action scenes, and dubious portrayal of Ruth as a childlike, kind-hearted oaf. Bosley Crowther of The New York Times wrote that it had "much more the tone of low-grade fiction than it has of biography ... it
10283-544: The pitching staff contributed to a 13-game losing streak that pushed the Cubs out of contention. In 1989, the first full season with night baseball at Wrigley Field, Don Zimmer 's Cubs were led by a core group of veterans in Ryne Sandberg , Rick Sutcliffe and Andre Dawson , who were boosted by a crop of youngsters such as Mark Grace , Shawon Dunston , Greg Maddux , Rookie of the Year Jerome Walton , and Rookie of
10396-497: The rest of the season and losing their last game, only to strangely "back into the championship" when the second place team, the Newark Bears , also lost their recent games. The Orioles, under manager Alphonse "Tommy" Thomas , went on to win the " Junior World Series " that year, four games to two, against Louisville . Six years later, with the shackles of war-time baseball cast off, in 1950, under manager Nick Cullop , Baltimore won
10509-472: The rival Monogram Pictures agreed to it. Sports writer Bob Considine was subsequently hired to co-write both an autobiography and biopic screenplay with Ruth. Ruth originally wanted to appear as himself, but his declining health made this impossible. Producers subsequently considered Orson Welles , Jack Carson , Dennis Morgan , and Paul Douglas for the role. Upon learning that Carson would not be released from Warner Bros. , Ruth chose Bendix. The casting
10622-487: The roster to boast what would soon be one of the best teams of the early century, sold the club to Jim Hart . Referencing the youth of the team's roster, the Chicago Daily News called the franchise the Cubs in 1902; it officially took the name five years later. During this period, which has become known as baseball's dead-ball era , Cub infielders Joe Tinker , Johnny Evers , and Frank Chance were made famous as
10735-468: The set of the production in Los Angeles and travelled there again to attend the premiere. However, his condition worsened during the screening, and he died three weeks later. Some contemporary reviews were positive, with Bendix drawing accolades from a number of critics for his performance. Variety called the film "interesting, if semi-fictional," writing that it combined "warmth, tears and chuckles into
10848-579: The sick and the crippled. This power is demonstrated four times in the film, each in an increasingly embarrassing manner, and William Bendix portrays Babe Ruth as a half-witted giant without any redeeming pathos." More recent assessments have been overwhelmingly negative. The Providence Journal writes that it "turns up on nearly every list of the worst movies ever made, with good reason". In an interview with Dan Shaughnessy of The Boston Globe , Ted Williams called The Babe Ruth Story "the worst movie I ever saw", while The Washington Times stated that
10961-427: The sport. During the 1940s, numerous film producers attempted to adapt Ruth's life into a biopic. Mark Hellinger tried to purchase Sandy Mock and Hal Levy's script King of Swat in 1941. Ruth himself later offered to sell the film rights to his life to Republic Pictures in exchange for $ 150,000 and a percentage of the film's gross. Although studio head Hal B. Wallis rejected this deal after months of negotiations,
11074-630: The staff with a 20-win season. The Cubs had high expectations in 2002, but the squad played poorly. On July 5, 2002, the Cubs promoted assistant general manager and player personnel director Jim Hendry to the General Manager position. The club responded by hiring Dusty Baker and by making some major moves in 2003. Most notably, they traded with the Pittsburgh Pirates for outfielder Kenny Lofton and third baseman Aramis Ramírez , and rode dominant pitching, led by Kerry Wood and Mark Prior , as
11187-638: The start of divisional play in 1969, the Cubs have appeared in the postseason 11 times through the 2024 season. The Cubs are known as "the North Siders", a reference to the location of Wrigley Field within the city of Chicago, and in contrast to the White Sox, whose home field ( Guaranteed Rate Field ) is located on the South Side. The Cubs won the Laureus World Team of the Year in 2017. Through 2024,
11300-617: The street, forced Dunn to sell Ruth (to the Boston Red Sox ) later in the 1914 season and many of his other players, and eventually temporarily relocate the team to Richmond, Virginia , as the Richmond Climbers , for the 1915 and 1916 seasons. After the Federal League's demise, Dunn returned with an Orioles team in 1916. This team, later in the 1919 I.L. Baseball Season won the International League pennant with 100 victories,
11413-489: The team declined during the 1970s, and they became known as "the Loveable Losers", which would become a long-standing moniker for the club. In 1977 , the team found some life, but ultimately experienced one of its biggest collapses. The Cubs hit a high-water mark on June 28 at 47–22, boasting an 8 + 1 ⁄ 2 game NL East lead, as they were led by Bobby Murcer (27 HR/89 RBI), and Rick Reuschel (20–10). However,
11526-429: The team has had a bad season. Babe is soon brought back, and the team wins the World Series thanks to him. With this, he and Claire get married. Soon after, Huggins dies from pyaemia . During Game 3 of the 1932 World Series , Babe gets a call from the father of a dying child and promises the father that when he goes up to bat, he will call the third shot and the ball will land at a certain spot; all of this will be for
11639-469: The team was unlikely to finish above fifth place. Although shortstop Ernie Banks would become one of the star players in the league during the next decade, finding help for him proved a difficult task, as quality players such as Hank Sauer were few and far between. This, combined with poor ownership decisions such as the College of Coaches , and the ill-fated trade of future Hall of Fame member Lou Brock to
11752-481: The team, as they proceeded to drop six of their last eight games as the Astros won the Wild Card. Despite the fact that the Cubs had won 89 games, this fallout was decidedly unlovable, as the Cubs traded superstar Sammy Sosa after he had left the season's final game after the first pitch, which resulted in a fine (Sosa later stated that he had gotten permission from Baker to leave early, but he regretted doing so). Already
11865-514: The top of the 9th inning, and the game was forfeited to Baltimore, 9–0. The I.L. Orioles continued to roll over International League opposition for several more seasons straight through to the 1925 Baseball Season . The team entered the Governors' Cup playoffs in the International circuit in 1936, 1937, and 1940, but did not win another pennant until the "war year" of 1944 . The team was leading
11978-430: The turning point of the era, and the Cubs did not win a playoff game for the next eleven seasons. In 2004 , the Cubs were a consensus pick by most media outlets to win the World Series. The offseason acquisition of Derek Lee (who was acquired in a trade with Florida for Hee-seop Choi ) and the return of Greg Maddux only bolstered these expectations. Despite a mid-season deal for Nomar Garciaparra , misfortune struck
12091-462: The wartime travel restrictions, the first three games of the 1945 World Series were played in Detroit , where the Cubs won two games, including a one-hitter by Claude Passeau , and the final four were played at Wrigley. The Cubs lost the series, and did not return until the 2016 World Series . After losing the 1945 World Series to the Detroit Tigers , the Cubs finished with a respectable 82–71 record in
12204-656: Was acquired from the Oakland Athletics in early July. The Cubs headed into the All-Star break with the NL's best record, and tied the league record with eight representatives to the All-Star game , including catcher Geovany Soto, who was named Rookie of the Year . The Cubs took control of the division by sweeping a four-game series in Milwaukee. On September 14, in a game moved to Miller Park due to Hurricane Ike , Zambrano pitched
12317-439: Was criticized because Bendix did not resemble Ruth, although the producers claimed that this was because they wanted to hire a professional actor rather than a stand-in. Charlie Root , Nana Bryant , Barton Yarborough , Wally Scott , and Paul Bryar were also originally intended to be in the film. Root claimed that he declined because the film portrayed Ruth's called shot at the 1932 World Series, which he himself had pitched with
12430-519: Was hired to manage the 1984 Cubs, with Don Zimmer coaching 3rd base and Billy Connors serving as pitching coach. Green shored up the 1984 roster with a series of transactions. In December 1983 Scott Sanderson was acquired from Montreal in a three-team deal with San Diego for Carmelo Martínez . Pinch hitter Richie Hebner (.333 BA in 1984) was signed as a free-agent. In spring training, moves continued: LF Gary Matthews and CF Bobby Dernier came from Philadelphia on March 26, for Bill Campbell and
12543-468: Was once a linebacker at the University of Texas. It was the second game of a doubleheader and the Cubs had won the first game in part due to a three-run home run by Moreland. After the bench-clearing fight, the Cubs won the second game, and the sweep put the Cubs at 68–45. In 1984, each league had two divisions, East and West. The divisional winners met in a best-of-5 series to advance to the World Series, in
12656-419: Was pulled from a game against the White Sox on June 25 after a tirade and shoving match with Derrek Lee, and was suspended indefinitely by Jim Hendry, who called the conduct "unacceptable". On August 22, Lou Piniella, who had already announced his retirement at the end of the season, announced that he would leave the Cubs prematurely to take care of his sick mother. Mike Quade took over as the interim manager for
12769-512: Was replaced by a team in New York City in 1903 and eventually became known as the New York Yankees . In 1903 , an Oriole minor league team joined the Eastern League (renamed the International League in 1911 , and not to be confused with the present day 'Double AA' level, minor league Eastern League ). This Orioles team stayed mediocre for the first few years of its existence, but after the arrival of Jack Dunn (1872–1928), as manager, it won
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