How a 37 Year Old Babe Ruth HUMBLED The Entire MLB

By 1932, baseball had decided Babe Ruth was finished. He was 37 years old, overweight, slower than he had been in his prime, and visibly declining. Lou Gehrig was becoming the face of the New York Yankees. Jimmie Foxx was chasing Ruth's home run records. Sportswriters were already preparing for baseball without the man who had transformed the sport. Babe Ruth responded by hitting .341 with 41 home runs and 137 RBI, leading the Yankees to 107 victories, sweeping the Chicago Cubs in the World Series, and producing perhaps the most famous home run in baseball history. This baseball documentary tells the story of Babe Ruth's incredible 1932 season, the final great chapter of his legendary career, and the moment a supposedly washed-up 37-year-old reminded Major League Baseball exactly who he was. The baseball world was changing. Jimmie Foxx was only 24 and would blast 58 home runs in 1932, coming closer to Ruth's legendary record of 60 than anyone had since Ruth himself. Lou Gehrig had tied Ruth with 46 home runs the previous season while driving in 184 runs. Younger stars were emerging across MLB, and the throne was supposed to belong to somebody else. Instead, Ruth delivered another extraordinary season. At 37, he batted .341, smashed 41 home runs, drove in 137 runs and drew 130 walks. His .489 on-base percentage meant he reached base in nearly half of his plate appearances. His 41 home runs also gave him seven consecutive seasons with at least 40, one of the greatest stretches of sustained power in baseball history. And Ruth wasn't carrying an ordinary team. The 1932 New York Yankees were loaded with legends. Lou Gehrig hit .349 with 34 home runs and 151 RBI. Earle Combs scored 143 runs. Tony Lazzeri drove in 113. Bill Dickey hit .310. Joe Sewell somehow struck out only three times in 503 at-bats. Lefty Gomez won 24 games, Red Ruffing won 18 and Johnny Allen won 17. Waiting for them in the World Series were the Chicago Cubs, and what followed became one of the most hostile championship series baseball had ever seen. The hatred started before Game One. Former Yankee Mark Koenig had helped Chicago win the National League pennant, but his Cubs teammates voted to give him only a half-share of their World Series bonus. Ruth considered it an insult and publicly attacked the Cubs. Chicago responded by mocking Ruth's age, weight, lifestyle and even his wife Claire. The Yankees won the first two games before arriving at Wrigley Field for Game Three. Chicago was waiting. Ruth and his wife were pelted with lemons and fruit. Thousands of Cubs fans screamed at him. Chicago's bench mocked his age and weight while Guy Bush relentlessly taunted him from the dugout. Ruth responded by smiling, tipping his cap and continuing to hit. In the first inning against Charlie Root, Ruth launched a three-run home run. Then, with the game tied 4-4 in the fifth, he returned to the plate for an at-bat that became baseball mythology. Ruth made a gesture with his hand. Some witnesses believed he pointed toward center field. Others believed he was pointing at the Cubs dugout. Others insisted he was simply signaling the count. Then Charlie Root delivered the pitch. Ruth crushed it approximately 440 feet toward the deepest part of Wrigley Field for a home run.The stadium went silent. Ruth rounded the bases laughing and gesturing toward Chicago's dugout. Lou Gehrig then stepped into the batter's box and homered on the very next pitch. The Yankees won Game Three 7-5. What nobody disputes is what happened next. A supposedly declining 37-year-old stood inside one of the most hostile stadiums in baseball and launched a home run to the deepest part of the ballpark. Thirty-seven years old. 41 home runs. A .341 batting average. 137 RBI. 107 Yankees victories. A World Series sweep. And the Called Shot. Babe Ruth wasn't young. He wasn't fast. He wasn't in the best shape of his life. He was simply Babe Ruth. Featuring Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Jimmie Foxx, Lefty Gomez, Red Ruffing, Tony Lazzeri, Bill Dickey, Earle Combs, Joe Sewell, Charlie Root, Guy Bush, Mark Koenig, Joe McCarthy and the legendary 1932 New York Yankees. This documentary explores Babe Ruth, the 1932 Yankees, Babe Ruth's Called Shot, the 1932 World Series, New York Yankees history, Chicago Cubs history, Wrigley Field, Lou Gehrig, MLB history, baseball history, World Series history, baseball legends, Hall of Fame players, classic baseball, legendary home runs, Yankees documentaries, Babe Ruth documentaries and the greatest moments in Major League Baseball history. If you enjoy long-form baseball documentaries, MLB history, Babe Ruth stories, New York Yankees history, World Series retrospectives, classic baseball and forgotten MLB stories, subscribe for more documentaries about the players and moments that shaped America's pastime.