Babe Ruth’s legendary called shot from Game 3 of the 1932 World Series has captivated baseball fans for nearly a century. But recently, the jersey Ruth wore during that iconic moment made its own headlines, expected to fetch a staggering $30 million at auction. While it didn’t quite hit that lofty mark, the final sale price was still jaw-dropping.
Let’s rewind to October 1, 1932: the Yankees faced off against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field. In the fifth inning, with the crowd jeering and Cubs players taunting him, Ruth allegedly pointed towards the center field bleachers before launching a home run off Cubs pitcher Charlie Root. Whether he really “called his shot” has been debated for decades since some claim that Ruth was perhaps gesturing towards Root or the Cubs bench instead. But what’s not in question is that Ruth’s homer helped the Yankees win 7-5. The next day, they swept the Cubs to take the World Series, making the called shot Ruth’s last home run in postseason play. Ever since, a batter calling their shot in the manner of Babe Ruth has been referenced and parodied in countless works of sports media.
Now, about that jersey. In typical Babe Ruth fashion, sometime around 1940, he casually gifted the historic garment to a golfing buddy in Florida. The jersey stayed in that lucky family’s hands until the early 1990s when the buddy’s daughter sold it to a collector. It first hit the auction block in 2005, selling for what now seems like a mere $940K. It seems that the golfing buddy did not know he owned the called shot jersey, or that information was simply forgotten. When someone photo-matched the jersey to Ruth’s iconic “called shot” game, the connection sent its value soaring. The jersey took center stage at an auction this past August, and after a fierce bidding war, it sold for an incredible $24.12 million.
While it didn’t quite “call its shot” for $30 million, $24.12 million isn’t exactly a bad day at the plate.