HOF Sketch Card Project: Babe Ruth

The following player needs no introduction, other than this: he is considered the greatest baseball player of all-time by most baseball historians and fans, and those who DON'T consider him the greatest have him as one of their top 3-5 players of all-time. He was part of the first Hall of Fame induction class in 1936 and is arguably the most important man to ever play the game.

I completed this sketch card in April 2012.

I completed this sketch card in August 2012.

10 random facts about Babe Ruth:

• By the time he retired, he set career records for home runs (714), slugging percentage (.690), runs batted in (RBI) (2,217), and on-base plus slugging (OPS) (1.164).
• He was the first player to hit 60 homers in one season.
• As a pitcher, he was part of a combined no-hitter on June 23, 1917. After walking the Washington Senators' leadoff hitter, he was ejected after arguing with the umpire. Reliever Ernie Shore replaced Ruth and retired all 26 batters he faced.
• The "Curse of the Bambino" is said to have begun after the Boston Red Sox sold Ruth to the Yankees at the end of the 1919 season. Up until that point, the Yankees were mediocre while the Red Sox had won 5 World Series titles. However, once Ruth joined the Yankees, they would go on to win more than 20 World Series championships while the Red Sox wouldn't win another one for almost 9 decades.
• He served as the Brooklyn Dodgers' first base coach during the 1938 season.
• He made many cameo appearances in films, with his first one coming in the 1920 silent film Headin' Home.
• Despite their dominance as teammates, Ruth and Lou Gehrig were embroiled in a feud that lasted for 7 years and ended on Lou Gehrig Day at Yankee Stadium in 1939.
• On May 25, at Forbes Field in Pittsburgh, Ruth went 4-for-4, drove in 6 runs and hit 3 home runs in an 11–7 loss to the Pirates; these would be the last 3 home runs of his career.
• The Babe Ruth Award is an annual award given to the MLB player with the best performance in the World Series.
• During his time St. Mary's Industrial School for Boys in Baltimore, a young Ruth was  taught tailoring and became a qualified shirtmaker; he was also part of both the school band and the drama club.