George Herman Ruth Jr. is one of the most celebrated players in baseball history. Fans and players alike have marveled at his career and he is still considered one of the greatest sports icons today. Ruth is accredited with the rise in popularity of the sport of baseball in the 1920s.

Ruth began his baseball career as a pitcher with the then minor league tam of the Baltimore Orioles. Ruth was acquired by the Boston Red Sox in 1914, after both the Philadelphia Athletics and Cincinnati Reds passed on him and opted on other players. After a highly successful stint as a pitcher in Boston, where he won the World Series Championship three times, Ruth was sold to the New York Yankees in 1919. In his first year with the Yankees, Ruth would become a power hitter, hitting 54 home runs. In New York, Ruth would add four more World Series Championships to his total.

Throughout his career, Ruth set numerous records, the most notable being the first player to hit sixty home runs in a single season in 1927. Ruth had a career total of 714 home runs, which was a record until 1974, when Hank Aaron’s total surpassed his. Ruth has a lifetime batting average of .342 and a career slugging percentage of .690. He led the league in home runs for 12 seasons and slugging percentage for 13 seasons. Due to all his achievements, Ruth would become one of the first five players to be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.