(LOT 439)
1920 Babe Ruth Original Type I George Grantham Bain Photo – Measures Approx. 4-1/4" x 6" – "Ruth Holds His Mighty Lumber in First Yankee Season" - Full PSA Type I LOA
The Red Sox will forever feel the pain of selling a young and flamboyant southpaw to the New York Yankees before the start of the 1920 baseball season. In 1919, the Red Sox realized Ruth's unparalleled batting skills necessitated his appearance on a baseball field nearly every game, and not just as a starting pitcher every fourth or fifth day. The "Bambino" responded by walloping 29 home runs in 130 games (while appearing in only 17 games as a pitcher). It was now obvious that this brash young superstar hurler had so much more to offer than his left arm, with his 29 round-trippers easily setting a then single-season record.

Unfortunately for Boston, Ruth would not continue his batting exploits with the Red Sox since he was sold to the Yankees by Harry Frazee to fund his "No, No, Nanette" theatre production before the start of the 1920 season. Babe Ruth's new home was now the New York Polo Grounds (Yankee Stadium wasn't open until 1923), and he didn't disappoint his new fan base, slugging an unheard of 54 and 59 home runs in his first two seasons with the Yankees. Not only did Ruth double his previous record of 29 dingers, he was out-homering virtually every Major League ball club! His complete line of unfathomable 1920 statistics during that inaugural "Big Apple" season included 54 round trippers, 135 runs batted in, a .376 batting average and nearly unheard of .847 slugging percentage!

Artifacts from Ruth's early Yankee playing days are few and far between, justifying why this 1920 George Grantham Bain Original Type I photo is an extraordinary link to Ruth's Yankee origin. Measuring approximately 4-1/4 x 6", this iconic image is accompanied by a full PSA Type I letter of authenticity, clearly stating renowned photographer George Grantham Bain was the original issuer of this image. Ruth's crystal clear black & white image is absolutely remarkable, as the "Sultan of Swat" dons his classic Yankee pinstripes while holding his majestic lumber. Taken in 1920, little did the youthful looking Ruth realize he was about to embark on a Yankee career that would place him at the top of every historians list as the greatest player to ever grace a ball field.

While the edges are somewhat wavy (revealing slight border trimming), no glaring surface flaws are evident on either side, and the white borders are super clean. The verso includes the classic "CULVER PICTURES INC." credit stamp evident on many Bain images since Culver Pictures picked up the remaining Bain photos not originally captured by the "Library of Congress". Babe Ruth mementos from his inaugural 1920 campaign are highly coveted by the most esteemed photo enthusiasts, and we cannot imagine a finer illustration of a boyish and innocent looking "Bambino" than this ultra-rare "Sultan of Swat" pose issued by the iconic photographer George Grantham Bain! - Full PSA/DNA Type I LOA

MIN BID $1,000

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