July 5, 1924--Babe Ruth Knocked Out

July 5, 1924--Babe Ruth Knocked Out

Ever since Babe Ruth began to play right field, he dreaded Griffith Stadium in Washington, DC. It was here that the stadium abruptly jutted out with a concrete bulge near the first base side foul line. The stadium had been built in 1911 and modified consistently thereafter to increase seating capacity though the current design seemed flawed and ill conceived.

On Saturday, July 5, 1924, the Yankees were scheduled for a second straight day of doubleheaders with the Senators. They had swept a similar doubleheader on Friday, Independence Day, 4-2 and 2-0. Now, they were within two games of the American League-leading Washington club. Two wins on Saturday would put both teams in a deadlock.

Ruth had come late to the ballpark as he had taken time that morning to sign autographs for soldiers and their families in Maryland at the Camp Meade, Army Base. In batting practice, prophetically, Ruth had told fellow Yankee and outfielder, Bob Meusel, that he felt uneasy. He had hit a ball off the concrete corner in question and noticed how it bounced erratically. It would not be hard to imagine that the Bambino was trying to figure out the best way to play a similar batted ball in the area.

With two outs and a runner on third in the first game, Washington Senators first baseman, Joe Judge slung a line drive that barely went foul near the right field corner. Ruth in hot pursuit reached out but missed and unable to stop his momentum ran straight into the concrete barrier. In an instant, the Sultan of Swat lay motionless on the grass.

Doc Woods, the Yankees trainer ran to the scene carrying a little black first aid bag that mostly consisted of band aids, an assortment of salves and smelling salts along with a bucket of cold water. It was initially thought that Ruth had hit his head (or specifically his chin) on the wall but it was later discovered that his abdomen had buckled awkwardly on impact and his leg and hip were impinged.

Ruth’s teammates and opponents gathered around him and many in the crowd had jumped the stands for the field, too. Most of these spectators were African American as the accident scene was below a section of seats typically segregated. A photographer snapped the shot of the still Ruth. Two policemen tried to restore order and kept the onlookers back as best as they could.

Amazingly, after being unconscious for nearly five minutes, Ruth insisted that he stay in the game. In the sixth inning, he even hit a double off Senators’ pitcher Walter Johnson though in running the bases it was apparent that he had a noticeable limp. The Yankees won 2-0, but subsequently lost the next contest 7-2 as Ruth went 0-3.

Two X-Rays were made of the Babe, none of which showed any fractures though the medical diagnosis confirmed a severely bruised pelvic bone. The injury continued to plague him for the next two months and impeded his speed on the bases and in the field.

Perhaps, that was all that the Senators needed to keep ahead of their competitors as they won the American League pennant by two games over the Yankees.