DIAMOND DUST: Babe Ruth is known for many feats and baseball wizardry… but not THIS one!

What he did in the Game 7 of the 1926 World Series has NEVER been replicated; but was it a blunder or a simple missed opportunity?

  Editor’s Note: For over a decade, from about 2005 until it closed up shop in January 2017, the late Malden Evening News ran a regular column called DIAMOND DUST about various baseball topics, written by Malden baseball icon the late Bob Rotondi. Today, we attempt to bring back the column, which will publish on as regular a basis as possible.

By Steve Freker

There is no player more celebrated at the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y., than the immortal Babe Ruth. There are over 50 individual exhibits – virtually the greater part of an entire wing– commemorating the career of the player frequently crowned the greatest of all time. But there was one game, a Game 7 of one of the greatest World Series ever played, for which Babe Ruth was far from the most popular player in the ballyard when it was concluded.

The St. Louis Cardinals defeated Ruth’s New York Yankees 4 games to 3 in the best-of-7 series, which took place from October 2 to October 10, 1926, at Yankee Stadium in New York and Sportsman’s Park in St. Louis. This was the first World Series appearance (and first National League pennant win) for the Cardinals, and would be the first of 11 World Series championships in Cardinals history. The Yankees were playing in their fourth World Series in six years after winning their first American League pennant in 1921 and their first world championship in 1923. They would play in another incredible 36 World Series (and remarkably, win 26 of those).

The ending of Game 7 ended in rather infamous fashion, in baseball terms. Every baseball aficionado knows this: Never make the first out or third out at third base. The reason is that, with nobody out and a runner at second base – already in scoring position – you have three outs to give the hitter a chance to move the runner over, or drive the runner in with a base hit, and with two outs, you want to give the hitter a chance to drive them in. There is no real baseball “saying” on this one, but what Babe Ruth did to end Game 7 and hand the Cardinals their first-ever World Series was questionable.

In Game 7, the Yankees, trailing 3–2 in the bottom of the ninth inning and down to their last out, Ruth walked for the fourth time of the game, bringing up Bob Meusel. Surprisingly, Ruth, a decent baserunner in his own right, took off for second base on the first pitch. Meusel swung and missed, and catcher Bob O’Farrell threw to second baseman and player/manager Rogers Hornsby, who tagged Ruth out, ending Game 7 and thereby crowning his Cardinals World Series champions for the first time. The 1926 World Series remains the only Series to date which ended with a baserunner being caught stealing.

Revisited, at the time, The New York Times and The Sporting News both reported the play was a botched “hit and run,” called by Meusel – with a hand signal – to Ruth, from the plate. Then Meusel missed contact with the pitch, turning Ruth into a veritable dead duck, with Hornsby kneeling and waiting, ball in glove after the throw by O’Farrell, the catcher. The “hit and run” is a means of getting the runner moving from first to second, with the intention of it being basically mandatory the hitter makes contact to try and catch the infielders out of position, to make sure the runner gets to second base.

The problem we, as baseball armchair purists, would have with that explanation is, “Really? Hit and run with TWO OUTS?” Nah. We don’t buy that one.

If The Babe was trying to make something happen with his teammate hoping against hope to get a hit against one of the greatest pitchers of all time in Grover Cleveland Alexander, we can see that. But it’s rarer than rare to see any baseball game end on that particular play – caught stealing – let alone in Game 7 of the World Series!

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Unusual game-ending play from 1926 World Series actually concluded a Malden High game that Tornados won this past spring

The play that ended the 1926 MLB World Series where Babe Ruth was caught stealing with two outs is a true rarity in baseball. It was actually the way a key Malden High baseball win concluded this past season, one that saw the Golden Tornado squad have its best season in 30 years with a 16-5 overall record.

There were two outs and a man on first in the top of the seventh inning, and Lynn Classical was down to its last out with freshman Ryan Bowdridge on the mound for the Tornados, the third of three pitchers for the home team that afternoon at Pine Banks Park. Sophomore Ryan McMahon and junior Jake Simpson had held visiting Lynn Classical to three runs as Malden had built a 5-3 lead after five innings. After a leadoff strikeout, one of four on the game by Bowdridge, a Rams single put a runner on first. A popup for the second out left the runner at first with Lynn Classical now down to its last out.

With the count 1-1, the Rams runner broke for second on a steal attempt. Malden High junior catcher Bo Stead fired a missile to second, and the senior captain and second baseman caught the throw and tagged the runner for the third out, ending the game. For Stead, it was his second runner thrown out in the game and perhaps the biggest one of his three-year varsity career, as Malden completed the two-game season sweep of Classical.

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Question of the Week

Only five MLB Baseball Hall of Fame inductees appear with their permanent honoree busts with “no logo” on their hats, apparently all of them signifying they played or were a team manager for multiple teams. Can you name them for points?

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Lynn Invitational Showcase event is coming next week; remains the most heavily recruited in the area

The most heavily recruited baseball showcase event for underclassmen high school baseball players returns to Fraser Field in Lynn next week. The 19th Annual Lynn Invitational will be held on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, August 13, 14 and 15. Over 120 players are expected to participate, including players from Everett, Malden, Saugus and Revere. Local players who took part last year included Ryan Bowdridge (Malden High, 2027), David Ruane (Malden Catholic, 2026), Cam Soroko (Saugus High, 2025, Bryant University commit) and Nate Soroko (Saugus High, 2026).

For more information on The Lynn Invitational, go to www.LynnInvitational.com

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Quiz Answer: Pitcher Jim “Catfish” Hunter (1987), Manager Tony La Russa (2014), Pitcher Greg Maddux (2014), Pitcher Roy Halladay (2019) and Pitcher Mike Mussina (2019).

4 – Major Leaguer

  3 – All-Star

  2 – Cleanup Hitter

  1 – Dropout