The Last Appearance

Yesterday was the 72nd anniversary of Babe Ruth's last appearance at Yankee Stadium.  Dying of throat cancer, a shrunken version of his former self, Babe walked on to the field to the cheers of a massive crowd for the last time.  As the frail Babe stood there, using the bat for support, what must he have been thinking?

His words to the crowd:

"Thank you very much ladies and gentlemen. You know how bad my voice sounds. Well, it feels just as bad. You know, this baseball game of ours comes up from the youth. That means the boys. And after you're a boy and grow up to know how to play ball, then you come to the boys you see representing themselves today in your national pastime. The only real game I think in the world is baseball. As a rule, some people think that if you give them a football or a baseball or something like that they naturally become athletes right away. But you can't do that in baseball. You've got to start from way down at the bottom, when you're 6 or 7 years of age. You can't wait until you are 15 or 16. You gotta let it grow up with you. And if you are successful, and you try hard enough, you're bound to come out on top just like these boys have come to top now. There have been so many lovely things said about me and I'm glad I got the opportunity to thank everybody. Thank you."

The Babe died on August 16.  His casket was taken to Yankee Stadium where more than 75,000 fans came to pay their respects.

Today In 1948: New York #Yankees legend Babe Ruth has his iconic No. 3 retired during what would be his final appearance at Yankee Stadium. #MLB #Baseball #History pic.twitter.com/PXpuSmab5V

— Baseball by BSmile (@BSmile) June 13, 2020