Customer Reviews

The Year Babe Ruth Hit 104 Home Runs: Recrowning Baseball's Greatest Slugger

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This book is unlike any other on Babe Ruth, and I have read quite a few most recently Montville's "Big Bam" and Reisler's treatise on the 1920 season. Jenkinson has spent nearly 30 years recreating all of Ruth's long drives, those counted as homers and those that may have just been flyouts. I had no idea that records this detailed could be obtained from Ruth's era, but Jenkinson has read every sportswriting account imaginable for each official game and for hundreds of exhibition (preseason, during season, and postseason) games that Ruth participated in.
I had always labored under the assumption, even after reading all the bios, that many of Ruth's homeruns were simply the product of the short right field at Yankee Stadium. In fact, the Babe hit very few down the right field line; most of his drives were between right-center and left-center field. Right-center was quite a shot in Ruth's day since the fence angled out sharply. The Babe also had tremendous power to the opposite field.
Jenkinson's "spray" diagrams show all the homeruns hit by Ruth and their approximate distances. Aerial photos of the stadiums around Ruth's time are also shown and arrows shown where Babe's longest drives landed.
A second assumption of mine is that Babe did not take care of himself over the years. In fact, the man wanted to exercise more but the Yankee ball club would not let him in order "to save his legs" for the long season. Ruth had taken it upon himself before spring training started, for several seasons, to hire one of the best exercise gurus in New York. The fact that Ruth could keep coming back strong after all his early season illnesses and nagging injuries shows the fortitude of the man. Baseball was his life and he never wanted to let any one down that had come to see him play. He had a remarkable compassion for people that is shown in several places.
The third assumption was that Babe was probably just an average fielder. I had always wondered about what type of fielder he was, and was always surprised that no biography that I read ever mentioned this. In fact he was an elite fielder, one of the best in the game according to Tris Speaker, the premier outfielder of the day. He was also a terrific baserunner until his last five years.
Babe Ruth was one of a kind and he would be a superstar in any era, whether as the great pitcher he was or as an everyday player. Jenkinson does an interesting analysis of how difficult it was for Ruth as opposed to the difficulties faced by today's players. He also has analyzed conservatively how many homeruns the Babe would hit based on today's shrunken stadiums. It will show the sluggers of the past 30 years in a new light. I hope to meet the author someday at the Babe Ruth museum. No one compares to the Bambino.

If you've read "The Big Bam" by Leigh Montville and/or "Babe" by Robert Creamer, you owe it to yourself to read Bill Jenkinson's book. Although you may think it's not possible, Ruth was a better slugger than you ever imagined. He was truly one of a kind.

Jenkinson's book is interesting, fascinating and meticulously well researched. He spent more than 25 years researching each of Ruth's home runs, during spring training, the regular season, post season and on barnstorming tours.

Part of Jenkinson's book details Ruth's "hidden career" of exhibition games. Jenkinson calculates that Ruth participated in 800 exhibition games in six countries, 42 states and more than 200 cities. He blasted more than 300 homers in those games. In 1921, Ruth played an unbelievable total of 207 games. A consummate showman, Ruth kept an incredible schedule, not to mention his off-the-field activities.

Jenkinson focuses on Ruth's power and superlatives. The Bambino didn't hit many routine home runs. Most fans really don't comprehend how spacious the ballparks were in Ruth's days. Jenkinson calculates that Ruth walloped 22 fly outs that traveled more than 450 feet. No one has ever hit as many balls as far as Ruth. What he could do in today's ballparks is unfathomable.

Jenkinson spends 70 pages near the end of the book discussing comparative difficulty of Ruth's home run feats compared to today's game, drawing conclusions and making projections. Stadium photographs showing where some of Ruth's monumental homers landed are particularly interesting and impressive.

Any historian or student of history must engage in countless hours of research in order to convincingly prove his thesis. Mr. Jenkinson succeeds with flying colors. The most fascinating section of this book is the one dealing with comparative difficulty. Jenkinson leaves no doubt that Ruth played under much more adverse conditions than modern day sluggers. I telephoned Mr. Jenkinson about a couple of points of comparison not mentioned in his book that had me wondering. One was the fact that Ruth played against only 7 teams and faced pitchers much more frequently (4-man rotations) than today's players. Could this be considered an advantage for Ruth. Jenkinson replied that after a while it really doesn't matter how often a hitter faces a pitcher. Another point I made was the fact that during day games, which Ruth played exclusively, shadows can hinder the batter's view. Again Jenkinson said that while this may have been a disadvantage for Ruth, the impact would have been negligent.
I must say that his willingness to discuss these issues (and others) with a reader of his fine book only makes his work more appreciated. I am looking forward to his next book.

I have a great amount of respect for what Bill Jenkinson has done hear, spending over 25 years of his life doing very, very difficult research. Bill researched most of this book the old-fashioned way, going to libraries and tracking down the people who lived during the life and times of Babe Ruth. It's really a remarkable achievement that he deserves to be praised for.

My favorite parts of the book are the later chapters, in which Jenkinson takes a more of a stance on the issues: How did race play a role, equipment issues, rule changes, etc. This is where the true marvel of this book is finally realized. Simply put, that Babe Ruth was the greatest baseball player ever. PERIOD. No arguments (even from a Red Sox fan. Well...maybe Ted Williams... :)

The first-hand recollections really stand out, as do Jenkinson's journeys to find the facts. His conclusions (which I won't share here) are astounding, and only add to the legend.

My only negative, which unfortunately for me was a big one, is that the first 100+ pages really drag. It's a lot of day-by-day accounts of Ruth's batting performances, which after a few seasons of reading, is pretty tedious. I liked some of it, moreso when there were stories included within the sections. Obviously, some people will like this section, I however, did not. It'd be safe to say that I enjoyed the story sections, and Jenkinson's theories/facts/conclusions much more.

Its great to be able to read a book that has taken so many , many hours of labor and yielded so much useful information.
After reading the detailed analyses and descriptions in this book it is hard to argue the conclusion that Babe Ruth hit the ball harder and farther than anyone else-- with his much-too-heavy bat reducing bat speed and no weight training, much less artificial enhancements ala MC Quire and Bonds. Even on steroids, the latter two cannot touch the Bambino for 450 foot + shots. Its not even close. And consider Babe routinely bombed 400 --475 + footers that were fly outs in the huge old fields of the 20s and 30s--
So the truth actually transcscends the myth-- Ruth was better than his legend.
With some aerobic work and strength training, modern medical care, a lighter bat, modern day fields and the DH rule...

If you value historical perspective on any sport, especially baseball, this is an excellent read. If you like to talk baseball with your buddies over a cold one, this is a must read, as it will arm you with facts to bolster your heartfelt opinions about power hitting. I have always wondered just how great Ruth really was as a hitter and how his abilities would translate to today's game. I never searched for this type of book because I assumed, incorrectly, that the raw data was not available. The data is available and the author, Mr. Jenkinson, has uncovered it and organized it with what could be called a "Ruthian" effort. The detail is as staggering as the distances Ruth hit the ball. However, the fun begins with the comparisons of every candidate slugger in the history of baseball and the projection of Ruth into today's game. The author covers every urge you have that starts with "and what about...". From the rule changes, stadium dimensions, the condition of the ball, pitching talent, the Negro leagues, the schedules, to conditioning of today's athletes, including steroids, and others, you receive both facts and opinions to help you make up your mind about just who was the greatest power hitter in baseball - by far.

As a bonus, you get insight into just who the Babe was and come to the conclusion that sports, and the world in general, could use a character like that although you may have to conclude that it just might not be possible.

This was not, strictly speaking, a biography. Nonetheless, I found it gave me a fresh perspective on not only Babe Ruth's career, but also the man. Mr. Jenkinson has exhaustively analysed Babe Ruth's career and, incredibly, tracked down each of his home runs, including to the extent possible those hit in exhibition games. The book's title comes from his simple and convincing assertion that outfield dimensions have shrunk to the extent that the Babe would have had 104 home runs in 1921 had outfields been the size of today's ball parks, plus a handful from rule changes. Interesting enough, but for me the great joy of the book comes from Mr. Jenkinson's efforts to account for other changes in the conditions under which Ruth played.

The most interesting of these was the extent to which the Babe devoted himself to his role as a public icon. Yes, he was a man who saw no reason to curb his various appetites. But in Mr. Jenkinson's study he was also a man who gave himself to his fans to a degree we cannot fathom today. Taking nothing away from the most unselfish of today's stars, they could not touch the Babe's dedication to serving the fans even if they wanted to. Constant travel to exhibition games, even during the season, barnstorming to small towns around the country (or Hawaii or even Japan) during the off-season, and endless autographs were only the tip of the iceberg. The Babe was swamped by children everywhere he went, Gulliver sometimes literally toppled to the crowd by the Lilliputians -- and always apparently returning their love ten-fold.

The other aspect of Ruth's career that is so helpfully illuminated by Mr. Jenkinson is his history of ailments, or rather the history of inadequate medical care and poor training regimens provided by the Yankees. Although it is impossible to prove in the same way as his home run analysis, Mr. Jenkinson makes a persuasive case that Ruth was terribly ill-served throughout his career and probably had his career somewhat shortened as a result.

I am not a big baseball fan but Babe Ruth has always had a fascination for me. I think this is the first time I've read a book that doesn't debunk the myths--it adds to them. This book presents some surprising information and an interesting way of thinking about the Babe's amazing abilities.

Jenkinson's book has what baseball fans want: statistics, lore, personal insight, and just plain fun stories. I am very impressed with the incredible decades-long research he undertook to compile this book. Just when I begin to question a factual detail, Jenkinson will mention an interview with a fan who saw the Babe hit a 600-foot home run, his trips to the Library of Congress, or interviews with Ted Williams, Reggie Jackson, or Mickey Mantle. His charts of the consistently massive distances of of the Babe's roundtrippers with relative lengths of ballparks in the 1920s compared to today's parks really makes the point that the Babe played under different--more difficult--circumstances. How can you argue with the simple fact of Babe--a rookie pitcher--hitting a dead ball 475 feet?

Very, very impressive writing and research. Very, very, fun. I can't put it down. Thanks for giving me back the legend, Mr. Jenkinson. I feel like a kid again reading your book.

The author did a incredible amount of research on the subject. His documentation of Ruth's power is amazing. He compares Ruth's production to the modern home run sluggers Bonds and McGuire. An interesting section discusses todays baseball enviornment with that of Ruth's era. Quite significant are the dimensions of those ballparks with what we have today as well as the ground rules that often turned what today would be a home run into a double or triple back then. Todays players enjoy the lifestyle comforts of planes and airconditioning that were not available then. Exercise,diet and physical conditioning are much more advanced now. Ruth played over 800 exhibition games in his day. Though the book can be tedious at times the message is clear. Ruth was the greatest slugger of all time. It makes you wish you could have seen one of those massive drives.