[Rarebooks] baseball item #12 from the Norman Kane collection (FS)

[Peter B. Howard]

1928                Spencer (J. W.) BABE RUTH! BABE RUTH! (We Know What He 
Can Do). Arranged by Harry L. Alford with ukulele arrangement.  Olneyville, 
Rhode Island : J. W. Spencer (1928)  Sheet music, 5pp.  Fine copy.

             In the 3rd chorus:

                         "Babe Ruth! Babe Ruth! That's the guy we mean
                         Babe Ruth! Babe Ruth! He cleans the basses [sic] clean
                         High and wide the Sultan of swat
                         Gives that baseball one terrible knock."

In the 4th chorus, lines 6-7 are covered over with a re-written text, printed:

"Eighty thousand grand will make him peppy hot
A record salary of the baseball crew."

     The song is surely in tribute to Ruth's 1927 season, the greatest in 
the history of baseball.  The origin of the sobriquet is obscure; we have 
not yet found an earlier use of it than in this song.


Babe Ruth (14th year), 32 years old                              Barry 
Bonds  (16th year), 36 years old

1927 
2002

151 
games 
153 games
                 540 at 
bats 
476 at bats
                 .356 batting 
average 
.328 batting average
                 158 
runs 
129 runs
                 158 runs batted 
in 
137 runs batted in
                 60 home 
runs 
73 home runs
                 8 
triples 
2  triples
                 29 
doubles 
32 doubles
                 7 stolen bases (caught six 
times)                                                       13 steals 
(caught three times)
                 .486 on base 
percentage 
.515 on base percentage
                 .772 slugging 
percentage 
.863 slugging percentage
                 89 strike 
outs 
93 strike outs
                 137 
walks 
177 walks


Ruth stole 117 bases in his career and had a lifetime batting average of 
.342; he walked 2062 times.   Bonds has stolen 509 bases to date; has 734 
home runs and counting.  Ruth walked Bond has walked 2426 times, and 
counting.

***Apparently not located by OCLC or included in the Bibliography of 
Published Sheet Music and Songs in the Collections of the Music Division at 
the Library of Congress.

$450.00



Peter B. Howard
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