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Ruth's Record Now in Doubt
by Jay Jennings
In trying to trace the origins of baseball's steroid scandal, researchers have unearthed this forgotten clipping from the Sporting News in 1928, which casts doubt on Babe Ruth's achievement.
New York, NY -- The 1927 season was one baseball fans will remember forever. Amazingly, it was the year the Boston Red Sox failed to win a World Series for the unbelievable ninth straight year. It was also the year the Sultan of Swat, the Bambino, Babe Ruth of New York's storied Yankees, hit 60 round trippers, a record I think we can all agree will never be broken. But now the validity of that record has come into question after reports surfaced that he used an illegal substance.
The gentleman who alleges he supplied Mr. Ruth with the substance, a bartender named Mitch Houlihan, says that the Bambino came into his establishment every day and requested something he called "the clear," a chemical compound more commonly known as "gin." In 1918, a constitutional amendment outlawed the use of such ethanol produced by fermentation.
"He took it orally," Mr. Houlihan said. "And within a very short time, he was ripped."
"You can see the changes. I mean the guy was a pitcher for the Red Sox," continued the voluble barkeep, "and then when he came to the Yankees, he was smacking four-baggers like crazy. His body's totally different now. You don't get a gut like that without drinking a lot of hard liquor. And the mincing steps around the bases? So he wouldn't fall down."
Mr. Houlihan displayed a calendar he claims he made for Mr. Ruth marked with secret codes, which he said documented the slugger's strict regimen. Under the week beginning July 12, 1927, for instance, all days carry the entry: "4-6 PM. HHH."
When asked what the notation meant, Mr. Houlihan replied, "It means happy hour at Houlihan's. Two for one well drinks."
Through his attorney, Mr. Ruth issued a statement saying he does not recall clearly anything that may have happened at Houlihan's but that he may have taken the gin unknowingly. He said it was possibly given to him by a friend who happened to buy a "round" and told him it was "water."
"We are going to get to the bottom of this abuse," promised commissioner Kennesaw Mountain Landis. "If he's violated Prohibition, there will be serious consequences. It besmirches the integrity of the game and deserves a severe slap on the wrist." He added that, as further punishment, Mr. Ruth could be stripped of his title, reducing him from the Sultan of Swat to the Margrave of Bunt.
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