Ever since their playing days, baseball followers have been comparing Babe Ruth and Negro Leagues slugger Josh Gibson. In some ways, it's a fair comparison. Both men were the defining home run hitters in their respective leagues and generations. I could go on for a long time about Josh Gibson's athletic accomplishments, as I intend to in a future article, but in my opinion a better comparison would be Babe Ruth and hall-of-fame pitcher Leon Day. Ruth and Day both grew up in Baltimore. They were both child prodigies and initially signed as teenagers by Baltimore teams. Both were great pitchers who also became known for their hitting prowess. Both played professional ball for 22 years. And the similarities don't stop there. Ruth's last full season as a player was the same year as Day's first season in the Negro Leagues (1934). At the beginning of that year, Ruth's New York team (the Yankees) offered him a position as the manager of the Newark Bears (he declined). Two years later, Day's New York team (the Eagles) left New York and moved to Newark, where they shared a stadium with the Bears. But my favorite similarity is how both men are honored and remembered in the Baltimore area.
Chronologically speaking, it would make sense to begin our Ruth-Day history tour at the Babe Ruth Birthplace and Museum; not far from Camden Yards... but the story really begins in West Baltimore at the Cardinal Gibbons School. Before he was known as the Babe, young George Herman Ruth lived at the boarding facility (then called St. Mary's Industrial School for Boys) from ages 7 until 19. It was here that he learned how to play baseball. For most of his time at St. Mary's, his primary position was catcher - where he was feared for his strong throwing arm (despite having to wear the mitt on his throwing hand due to lack of proper equipment). It wasn't until his last few years at the school that he began to experiment with pitching. His excellent hand-eye coordination made him a natural hitter and he was soon holding his own against boys four and five years his senior.
Ruth also learned how to sew shirts at St. Mary's, where each student was required to study a trade of his choosing to prepare him to enter the workforce. Ruth excelled in this task as well. The school eventually employed him to create clothes for some of the other boys, and even to turn a little profit through sales to the general public. If the Babe didn't make it as a ballplayer, he almost certainly would have become a tailor. Even after he found his fame and fortune, he continued to sew and mend his own shirts. Nowadays, the baseball field at St. Mary's looks a little different than in Babe's time (supposedly, home plate is where centerfield was and vice-versa), and has fallen into a state of disrepair, but it's still there.
Not far from Cardinal Gibbons is an athletic park named after Negro Leagues star pitcher Leon Day. The park is located in Southwest Baltimore, near the neighborhood where he was raised. Like Ruth, Day's talent was discovered at an early age. By the time he was 12, he was playing second base and pitching with a local men's team, the Mount Winans Athletic Club. A few years later, he left Frederick Douglass High School because it didn't have a baseball team. He was picked up by the struggling Baltimore Black Socks at 17, where he was able to hone his skills as a pitcher.
Day's story continues at the Herbert V. Simmons Museum of Negro Leagues Baseball in Owings Mills, Maryland. The photos and curation will take you through his impressive career, which included seven East-West All-Star games and a league championship. He won 13 games for the Newark Eagles in 1937, while losing zero. In 1942 he struck out 18 batters on the Baltimore Elite Giants, which is considered a Negro National League record (a year earlier he established a Puerto Rican single-game record by fanning 19). After serving in the U.S. army from 1943 - 1946, Day pitched a no-hitter in his first game back in the U.S. That was a good year for Day. He pitched 22 games and batted .385.
Babe Ruth accumulated a few impressive stats of his own, especially after leaving Baltimore (you may have heard of his 714 home runs, or his two 20 win seasons as a pitcher). You can see memorabilia from his legendary career at the aforementioned Babe Ruth Birthplace and Museum, located in his early childhood home. His days with the Red Sox and Yankees were just part of his journey. Ruth barnstormed all over the country and starred in exhibition games throughout the world. It's hard to find a city that can't boast a visit from the Bambino. In 1936, he was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame as part of its inaugural class.
As for Leon Day, he extended his career a few years by playing in Mexico and Canada. He returned to Newark for a while, where he met the woman who became his wife. Soon after, they came home to Baltimore, where Leon lived the remainder of his years as an Orioles fan. After decades of waiting, Day was finally inducted into the Hall of Fame on March 7, 1995; the 12th player from the Negro Leagues to receive the honor. He died 6 days later. You can pay your respects at Day's final resting place in Arbutus Memorial Park, southwest of Baltimore. His epitath reads: "An exceptional man and a great athlete, he was the gentleman of the mound, who graced the baseball field for 22 years. Gracious, humble, and kind. He was a Hall of Famer in every sense of the word."
You can view more photos of Babe Ruth and Leon Day sites in Batimore by clicking here.
Chronologically speaking, it would make sense to begin our Ruth-Day history tour at the Babe Ruth Birthplace and Museum; not far from Camden Yards... but the story really begins in West Baltimore at the Cardinal Gibbons School. Before he was known as the Babe, young George Herman Ruth lived at the boarding facility (then called St. Mary's Industrial School for Boys) from ages 7 until 19. It was here that he learned how to play baseball. For most of his time at St. Mary's, his primary position was catcher - where he was feared for his strong throwing arm (despite having to wear the mitt on his throwing hand due to lack of proper equipment). It wasn't until his last few years at the school that he began to experiment with pitching. His excellent hand-eye coordination made him a natural hitter and he was soon holding his own against boys four and five years his senior. Ruth also learned how to sew shirts at St. Mary's, where each student was required to study a trade of his choosing to prepare him to enter the workforce. Ruth excelled in this task as well. The school eventually employed him to create clothes for some of the other boys, and even to turn a little profit through sales to the general public. If the Babe didn't make it as a ballplayer, he almost certainly would have become a tailor. Even after he found his fame and fortune, he continued to sew and mend his own shirts. Nowadays, the baseball field at St. Mary's looks a little different than in Babe's time (supposedly, home plate is where centerfield was and vice-versa), and has fallen into a state of disrepair, but it's still there.
Not far from Cardinal Gibbons is an athletic park named after Negro Leagues star pitcher Leon Day. The park is located in Southwest Baltimore, near the neighborhood where he was raised. Like Ruth, Day's talent was discovered at an early age. By the time he was 12, he was playing second base and pitching with a local men's team, the Mount Winans Athletic Club. A few years later, he left Frederick Douglass High School because it didn't have a baseball team. He was picked up by the struggling Baltimore Black Socks at 17, where he was able to hone his skills as a pitcher.Day's story continues at the Herbert V. Simmons Museum of Negro Leagues Baseball in Owings Mills, Maryland. The photos and curation will take you through his impressive career, which included seven East-West All-Star games and a league championship. He won 13 games for the Newark Eagles in 1937, while losing zero. In 1942 he struck out 18 batters on the Baltimore Elite Giants, which is considered a Negro National League record (a year earlier he established a Puerto Rican single-game record by fanning 19). After serving in the U.S. army from 1943 - 1946, Day pitched a no-hitter in his first game back in the U.S. That was a good year for Day. He pitched 22 games and batted .385.
Babe Ruth accumulated a few impressive stats of his own, especially after leaving Baltimore (you may have heard of his 714 home runs, or his two 20 win seasons as a pitcher). You can see memorabilia from his legendary career at the aforementioned Babe Ruth Birthplace and Museum, located in his early childhood home. His days with the Red Sox and Yankees were just part of his journey. Ruth barnstormed all over the country and starred in exhibition games throughout the world. It's hard to find a city that can't boast a visit from the Bambino. In 1936, he was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame as part of its inaugural class. As for Leon Day, he extended his career a few years by playing in Mexico and Canada. He returned to Newark for a while, where he met the woman who became his wife. Soon after, they came home to Baltimore, where Leon lived the remainder of his years as an Orioles fan. After decades of waiting, Day was finally inducted into the Hall of Fame on March 7, 1995; the 12th player from the Negro Leagues to receive the honor. He died 6 days later. You can pay your respects at Day's final resting place in Arbutus Memorial Park, southwest of Baltimore. His epitath reads: "An exceptional man and a great athlete, he was the gentleman of the mound, who graced the baseball field for 22 years. Gracious, humble, and kind. He was a Hall of Famer in every sense of the word."You can view more photos of Babe Ruth and Leon Day sites in Batimore by clicking here.
