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“Meeting the Babe…. Babe Ruth, that is…”
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American Legion baseball
will always have a very special meaning to me. I mean, how often you get
to meet and talk to Babe Ruth in one person's
lifetime!
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The place was Shibe Park, the venerable old ballpark in North Philadelphia
that had been home to both the Phillies and the old Connie Mack Athletics
from 1909 until 1955 before it was razed for a parking lot in
1976.*
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The year was 1947, one hot and humid July 29th day in
Philadelphia
where some 10,000 kids had been invited to attend the
traveling "tribute" to
the Babe at the annual American Legion Baseball All-Star
game in
Philadelphia
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(Earlier, that year, because of Ruth's failing health the major baseball
leagues
declared April 27, "Babe Ruth Day" throughout the nation. Ruth
would later be appointed Director of American Legion Baseball.)
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My invitation came from a brave adult Central Philadelphia YMCA
Branch Boy's
Leader with an unforgettable personality— at least to me as a
kid. His name is
also unforgettable, Mr. Phil Mann.
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Mr. Mann selected about six or seven of us boys (then "Inner City"
kids) for this
particular outing - primarily because we showed up early
Saturday morning—for
gym call and stuff, and because he favored us guys,
anyway.
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Arriving at the North Philadelphia ball park via the Lehigh Avenue trolley
car. We entered the park just in time to witness an overwhelming and never
to be forgotten scene of green grass grandeur, especially for a
twelve-year-old sixth grader.
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Here, I'll let the pages of The Philadelphia Inquirer
narrate the
spectacle:
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"On July 29, 1947, The Babe visited Shibe
Park, as part of his tour for
the Ford Motor Company
for the American Legion All Star Game sponsored
by The Inquirer.
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"Some 10,000 youngsters went wild when an open car drove onto the
field and the
Babe stepped out.
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"He was greeted at home plate by Connie Mack and addressed the
group over the
microphone, his voice being surprisingly vibrant and his
delight at the rousing
reception very apparent.
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"Organized
baseball, suddenly conscious stricken, had earlier
declared April 27,
1947 Babe Ruth Day.
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"Bundled in his traditional Camels Hair Coat. He replied to the gracious
speeches and the prayer offered by Cardinal Spellman with a husky,
heartbreaking almost incoherently audible speech about the value of
baseball for
boys.
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"Thousands wept at the sight and sound of what had been an
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indescribably vital American Hero."
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* * *
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After the Babe's tumultuous applause and juvenile screams, Ruth
proceeded to
his third base box seats, first row off the field, accompanied by
a full entourage
of VIP's and his wife.
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My
gang from the "Y" was also seated almost directly behind Ruth
and throughout
the game--which was commanding everyone's attention-- I started
to slowly make
my way— stealthily—down towards his box.
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Reaching the first row of seats and moving in an aisle which opened to a
flimsy
and unattended metal gate on the field, I made my bold move.
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Darting just a few feet on the field and turning to the right, I was
suddenly
face-to face with The Babe!
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He was sitting in the front row and having a laugh with his friends. He
was a bit startled at my approach but I moved swiftly, a piece of scrap
paper in
hand and only a school pencil ( alas, no ballpoints yet...) in my
hand and thrust
it toward him.
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He
smiled, said "Sure, Kid..." in a raspy voice and happily penciled
"Babe Ruth" on
the paper.
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As the
popular saying goes, I then pushed the envelope...
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"Could you sign it, 'To Don'?" I asked in a weak and wimpy manner.
My humility must
have caught his sympathetic attention.
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"Sure
Don, Here it is..."
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Scrambling back to my seating area and clutching my new-found
treasure, I
suddenly realized that I had just hit a home run myself, with a
personal
autograph from Babe Ruth!
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Even now, some 57 years later, the memory of that day still stands out
clearly
as one of my crowning moments,
Even so after witnessing three major wars, many global conflicts, a
big-city newspaper
career of meeting and handshaking hundreds of VIP's,
Presidents, Rock
Stars, renowned Athletes and glamorous “superstars” of
Broadway and Hollywood.
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To this day, every time the conversation turns to American Legion
Baseball, the mere mention evokes that special time in my life, an
unforgettable
and proud tableaux.
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Footnotes:
Babe spent most of his later years giving talks on the radio or in
orphanages and hospitals, and serving as a spokesperson for United States
War Bonds
on World War II.
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Babe Ruth died at age 53 on August 16th, 1948 at Memorial
Hospital New York
City. His body lay in state at the entrance of Yankee
Stadium
on August 17th and 18th and it is estimated that
over 100,000 people came to
honor him.
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Thousands of fans surrounded New York's St Patrick's Cathedral on
the day of his
funeral
and followed
the route to the Gate of Heaven Cemetery in Hawthorne, New
York, as the world stood in mourning at the passing of Babe Ruth.
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* * *
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Shibe
Park opened in April 12, 1909 and distinguished itself in
record book annals as
baseball's first concrete and steel ballpark .On May
16th, 1939
it also hosted the American Leagues first night game. The park
was renamed
Connie Mack Stadium to honor the retired A's manager in
1953 but two years
later the A's moved to Kansas City leaving the Phil's as
sole occupants.
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Don McDonough, who served in Special Services in the Army, is a former
reporter/writer for The Philadelphia Inquirer and a retired Philadelphia
public relations executive. He is now Adjutant of American Legion
Post 372, in
Cherry Hill, NJ.
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