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Primary sourcePhotograph

Ruth and Shore

George Grantham Bain Collection

A photograph of young Red Sox pitchers Babe Ruth and Ernie Shore, taken during Ruth's early pitching years in Boston.

Shows the young Ruth as a Red Sox pitcher, documenting his early pitching career before he became a home-run hitter.

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Sepia photograph of two baseball players seated side by side on a dirt-edged bench in front of a dugout. Both wear light uniforms and caps; the player on the right has RED SOX lettering on his jersey. Both have socks with dark bands and cleats. Two men in shirts sit in the background.
Bain News Service, Ruth and Shore, Boston Red Sox pitchers.

About this source

What it is

This is a photograph from the Bain News Service showing two Boston Red Sox pitchers, Babe Ruth and Ernie Shore, seated together on a bench near a dugout. Shore had come to the Red Sox with Ruth from the Baltimore Orioles in 1914.

Why it matters

Today Ruth is remembered mostly as a hitter, but he began his career as a talented left-handed pitcher. This image documents that early stage of his career, before he became famous for home runs, and shows him alongside a fellow player who shared his path from Baltimore to Boston.

Look closer

  • What details in the uniforms tell you this is an early 1900s photograph?
  • Why might a news service have photographed two pitchers together?
  • What does this image leave out about Ruth's later career?

This photograph is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Babe Ruth on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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Babe Ruth Bows Out

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Secondary source

Yankee Stadium

1923

Black-and-white full-length studio portrait of a man in a striped baseball uniform and cap with a large N-style logo, holding a wooden bat on his shoulder against a painted backdrop. Signature reads Yours truly Babe Ruth.Photograph

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Babe Ruth2

Irwin, La Broad, & Pudlin · c. 1920

Black-and-white portrait photograph, cropped at the shoulders, of a man wearing a dark cap with a white interlocking NY emblem. He has a serious expression and looks toward the camera, wearing a light collared shirt.Photograph

Primary source

Babe Ruth cropped

1920s

Four baseball bats displayed upright in a glass case against a yellow wall with placards. From left: a light wood bat signed by Babe Ruth, a bat signed by Roger Maris, a pale bat signed by Mark McGwire, and a black bat signed by Sammy Sosa. Each has a labeled placard below.Artifact

Primary source

Home Run Record Bats Display

1927 (bat); display photographed later

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