100 years ago, Babe Ruth became Babe Ruth with a 500-foot homer into an Alligator Farm

It's a question you've probably always wanted to know: When did Babe Ruth become Babe Ruth? How did the ace pitcher transform into the prodigious slugger? At what point did the kid from the Pigtown section of Baltimore turn into the Great Bambino -- the mythical batsman, the most famous ballplayer who ever lived?
Well, many point to a Spring Training game nearly 100 years ago. A time when there were no Cactus or Grapefruit Leagues, but just one preseason baseball mecca in Hot Springs, Ark. More than 130 future Hall of Famers trained in the area during the late-1800s into the early 20th century -- including names like Cy Young, Cap Anson, Walter Johnson, Mel Ott, Ty Cobb and Ruth. Like the other players, Ruth hiked the mountains, frequented the restaurants and bathed in the Hot Springs -- becoming an annual man about town. He worked hard, but, being the Babe, he also had a lot of fun. I mean, look at this photo.
Ruth, entering his fifth MLB season in 1918, was mostly a full-time pitcher. He had nine homers in 407 plate appearances and a fantastic 67-34 record, while maintaining a 2.07 ERA. In 1916, he went 23-12 with a 1.75 ERA, nine shutouts and gave up zero home runs in 323 2/3 innings pitched. He was a rising 22-year-old star, one of the best hurlers in the Majors.

But Boston knew it couldn't keep his bat out of the lineup and, after many players left to serve in World War I, management decided to try Ruth out at first base that March. Ruth reported to Arkansas for the Boston Red Sox in, as we might say today about every single player who ever loses weight during the winter, the best shape of his life. Not from doing giant box-jumps or balancing on skateboards, but for a much more early-20th century reason: He needed to chop wood all winter to heat his Massachusetts cottage.

The Red Sox's regular first baseman, Dick Hoblitzel, was also late to camp, so, manager Ed Barrow really had no other choice but to play the Babe in the field. The 6-foot-2 behemoth of a man, who towered over most other players around him, took advantage of his manager's move in that very first exhibition game at Whittington Park against the Brooklyn Dodgers on March 17. In the fourth inning, he hit a long drive beyond the outfielders' heads and into a woodpile -- circling the bases for a homer. Then, in the sixth, he hit the famed dinger that turned him from simple human into home run god.
The ball sailed over the right-field fence, across the street and landed in an alligator farm. Fans for both teams stood up and cheered -- astounded by how far the homer traveled. The Boston Globe had this to say postgame:
…the other (homer #2) not only scaled the right-field barrier, but continued on to the alligator farm, the intrusion kicking up no end of commotion among the "Gators."
And from the Boston Post:
"... he drove the ball so far over the right field fence for a second circuit clout that even the players of the Brooklyn team themselves had to arise to the occasion and cheer."

While most spectators at the time figured it to be the longest home run they've ever seen hit, how far did it really go?
Well, in 2011, Hot Springs baseball historian Bill Jenkinson and CEO of the Convention and Visitors Bureau Steve Arrison hired an engineering crew to measure the distance from where the Whittington Park home plate once stood (now a parking lot) out to the still-existing alligator farm. Using old photographs, modern satellite imagery and tree markers, the ball was determined to have traveled at least 500 feet. Here's a sketch of what the homer's route looked like -- the green box signaling the landing spot:

And, as Jenkinson meticulously writes, there is a case to make that the blast was the first in baseball history to reach the 500-foot mark. Pre-Ruth sluggers like Roger Connor and Dan Brouthers probably hit balls upwards of 450 feet, but there's not much mention of those mammoth homers -- mostly because it was just so long ago and power wasn't a major factor in the game. Offense picked up in 1911 when a cork was first inserted inside a baseball. This helped batters like Ruth (and let's be honest, there weren't many others like him at the time) crush baseballs longer than ever before dreamed.
Weirdly enough, or, perhaps not that weird considering who we're talking about, Ruth hit a dinger estimated to be even longer the following week at Whittington Park. The Boston Post claimed it cleared the fence by 200 feet and soared over Swan Lake (in the above diagram). Ruth went on to get more at-bats than ever during the regular season -- leading all of baseball with 11 long balls. He hit 29 the next year and 54 the next. His career as a full-time starting pitcher was all but finished, supplanted by his herculean abilities at the plate -- much of which can be attributed to those few days at a little ballpark in Hot Springs, Arkansas.
In the midst of his March 1918 barrage, Ruth probably put it best when Boston's owner told him how much money he owed in missing balls.
"I can't help it. They ought to make these [expletive] parks bigger."

seductrice.net
universo-virtual.com
buytrendz.net
thisforall.net
benchpressgains.com
qthzb.com
mindhunter9.com
dwjqp1.com
secure-signup.net
ahaayy.com
tressesindia.com
puresybian.com
krpano-chs.com
cre8workshop.com
hdkino.org
peixun021.com
qz786.com
utahperformingartscenter.org
worldqrmconference.com
shangyuwh.com
eejssdfsdfdfjsd.com
playminecraftfreeonline.com
trekvietnamtour.com
your-business-articles.com
essaywritingservice10.com
hindusamaaj.com
joggingvideo.com
wandercoups.com
wormblaster.net
tongchengchuyange0004.com
internetknowing.com
breachurch.com
peachesnginburlesque.com
dataarchitectoo.com
clientfunnelformula.com
30pps.com
cherylroll.com
ks2252.com
prowp.net
webmanicura.com
sofietsshotel.com
facetorch.com
nylawyerreview.com
apapromotions.com
shareparelli.com
goeaglepointe.com
thegreenmanpubphuket.com
karotorossian.com
publicsensor.com
taiwandefence.com
epcsur.com
mfhoudan.com
southstills.com
tvtv98.com
thewellington-hotel.com
bccaipiao.com
colectoresindustrialesgs.com
shenanddcg.com
capriartfilmfestival.com
replicabreitlingsale.com
thaiamarinnewtoncorner.com
gkmcww.com
mbnkbj.com
andrewbrennandesign.com
cod54.com
luobinzhang.com
faithfirst.net
zjyc28.com
tongchengjinyeyouyue0004.com
nhuan6.com
kftz5k.com
oldgardensflowers.com
lightupthefloor.com
bahamamamas-stjohns.com
ly2818.com
905onthebay.com
fonemenu.com
notanothermovie.com
ukrainehighclassescort.com
meincmagazine.com
av-5858.com
yallerdawg.com
donkeythemovie.com
corporatehospitalitygroup.com
boboyy88.com
miteinander-lernen.com
dannayconsulting.com
officialtomsshoesoutletstore.com
forsale-amoxil-amoxicillin.net
generictadalafil-canada.net
guitarlessonseastlondon.com
lesliesrestaurants.com
mattyno9.com
nri-homeloans.com
rtgvisas-qatar.com
salbutamolventolinonline.net
sportsinjuries.info
wedsna.com
rgkntk.com
bkkmarketplace.com
zxqcwx.com
breakupprogram.com
boxcardc.com
unblockyoutubeindonesia.com
fabulousbookmark.com
beat-the.com
guatemala-sailfishing-vacations-charters.com
magie-marketing.com
kingstonliteracy.com
guitaraffinity.com
eurelookinggoodapparel.com
howtolosecheekfat.net
marioncma.org
oliviadavismusic.com
shantelcampbellrealestate.com
shopleborn13.com
topindiafree.com
v-visitors.net
djjky.com
053hh.com
originbluei.com
baucishotel.com
33kkn.com
intrinsiqresearch.com
mariaescort-kiev.com
mymaguk.com
sponsored4u.com
crimsonclass.com
bataillenavale.com
searchtile.com
ze-stribrnych-struh.com
zenithalhype.com
modalpkv.com
bouisset-lafforgue.com
useupload.com
37r.net
autoankauf-muenster.com
bantinbongda.net
bilgius.com
brabustermagazine.com
indigrow.org
miicrosofts.net
mysmiletravel.com
selinasims.com
spellcubesapp.com
usa-faction.com
hypoallergenicdogsnames.com
dailyupdatez.com
foodphotographyreviews.com
cricutcom-setup.com
chprowebdesign.com
katyrealty-kanepa.com
tasramar.com
bilgipinari.org
four-am.com
indiarepublicday.com
inquick-enbooks.com
iracmpi.com
kakaschoenen.com
lsm99flash.com
nana1255.com
ngen-niagara.com
technwzs.com
virtualonlinecasino1345.com
wallpapertop.net
casino-natali.com
iprofit-internet.com
denochemexicana.com
eventhalfkg.com
medcon-taiwan.com
life-himawari.com
myriamshomes.com
nightmarevue.com
healthandfitnesslives.com
androidnews-jp.com
allstarsru.com
bestofthebuckeyestate.com
bestofthefirststate.com
bestwireless7.com
britsmile.com
declarationintermittent.com
findhereall.com
jingyou888.com
lsm99deal.com
lsm99galaxy.com
moozatech.com
nuagh.com
patliyo.com
philomenamagikz.net
rckouba.net
saturnunipessoallda.com
tallahasseefrolics.com
thematurehardcore.net
totalenvironment-inthatquietearth.com
velislavakaymakanova.com
vermontenergetic.com
kakakpintar.com
jerusalemdispatch.com
begorgeouslady.com
1800birks4u.com
2wheelstogo.com
6strip4you.com
bigdata-world.net
emailandco.net
gacapal.com
jharpost.com
krishnaastro.com
lsm99credit.com
mascalzonicampani.com
sitemapxml.org
thecityslums.net
topagh.com
flairnetwebdesign.com
rajasthancarservices.com
bangkaeair.com
beneventocoupon.com
noternet.org
oqtive.com
smilebrightrx.com
decollage-etiquette.com
1millionbestdownloads.com
7658.info
bidbass.com
devlopworldtech.com
digitalmarketingrajkot.com
fluginfo.net
naqlafshk.com
passion-decouverte.com
playsirius.com
spacceleratorintl.com
stikyballs.com
top10way.com
yokidsyogurt.com
zszyhl.com
16firthcrescent.com
abogadolaboralistamd.com
apk2wap.com
aromacremeria.com
banparacard.com
bosmanraws.com
businessproviderblog.com
caltonosa.com
calvaryrevivalchurch.org
chastenedsoulwithabrokenheart.com
cheminotsgardcevennes.com
cooksspot.com
cqxzpt.com
deesywig.com
deltacartoonmaps.com
despixelsetdeshommes.com
duocoracaobrasileiro.com
fareshopbd.com
goodpainspills.com
hemendekor.com
kobisitecdn.com
makaigoods.com
mgs1454.com
piccadillyresidences.com
radiolaondafresca.com
rubendorf.com
searchengineimprov.com
sellmyhrvahome.com
shugahouseessentials.com
sonihullquad.com
subtractkilos.com
valeriekelmansky.com
vipasdigitalmarketing.com
voolivrerj.com
worldhealthstory.com
zeelonggroup.com
1015southrockhill.com
10x10b.com
111-online-casinos.com
191cb.com
3665arpentunitd.com
aitesonics.com
bag-shokunin.com
brightotech.com
communication-digitale-services.com
covoakland.org
dariaprimapack.com
freefortniteaccountss.com
gatebizglobal.com
global1entertainmentnews.com
greatytene.com
hiroshiwakita.com
iktodaypk.com
jahatsakong.com
meadowbrookgolfgroup.com
newsbharati.net
platinumstudiosdesign.com
slotxogamesplay.com
strikestaruk.com
techguroh.com
trucosdefortnite.com
ufabetrune.com
weddedtowhitmore.com
12940brycecanyonunitb.com
1311dietrichoaks.com
2monarchtraceunit303.com
601legendhill.com
850elaine.com
adieusolasomade.com
andora-ke.com
bestslotxogames.com
cannagomcallen.com
endlesslyhot.com
iestpjva.com
ouqprint.com
pwmaplefest.com
qtylmr.com
rb88betting.com
buscadogues.com
1007macfm.com
born-wild.com
growthinvests.com
promocode-casino.com
proyectogalgoargentina.com
wbthompson-art.com
whitemountainwheels.com
7thavehvl.com
developmethis.com
funkydogbowties.com
travelodgegrandjunction.com
gao-town.com
globalmarketsuite.com
blogshippo.com
hdbka.com
proboards67.com
outletonline-michaelkors.com
kalkis-research.com
thuthuatit.net
buckcash.com
hollistercanada.com
docterror.com
asadart.com
vmayke.org
erwincomputers.com
dirimart.org
okkii.com
loteriasdecehegin.com
mountanalog.com
healingtaobritain.com
ttxmonitor.com
nwordpress.com
11bolabonanza.com