Even Shohei Ohtani Cannot Challenge This Batting Mark By ‘The Babe’
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TOKYO: American baseball legend Babe Ruth hits his first home run during his 1934 tour of Japan at Miji Shrine Stadium. (Photo by New York Times Co./Getty Images)
Getty ImagesBaseball players have taken aim at many batting achievements by “The Babe”. There’s one bizarre feat that may live forever.
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Current stars Shohei Ohtani, Kyle Schwarber and Aaron Judge will never get a chance. Hall of Famers Henry Aaron, Jim Thome and Ted Williams, legendary sluggers Barry Bonds, Alex Rodriguez and Roger Maris – along with just about everybody in MLB history never came close.
Even Babe Ruth had no shot at the nondescript exploit. That’s because George Herman (Babe) Ruth did not do it. Journeyman George Werner Birrer did – and earned the nickname “Babe” because of it.
On July 19, 1955, Birrer accumulated all two of his career home runs and all six of his career RBI in one game. Nobody before or since has had such an unexpected one-day outburst and then zilch at the plate.
Such odd occurrences are the very essence of baseball. For every fabulous feat, there’s an interestingly zany one.
The right-hander, 25 at the time, also got one quarter of his four career saves after replacing Frank Lary of the Detroit Tigers against the Baltimore Orioles at Briggs Stadium that day. He came on with a 5-3 lead, runners on second and third and nobody out in the top of the sixth inning. The Tigers won, 12-3, thanks to his shutout pitching and standout hitting.
In the bottom of the sixth, the rookie got his second career hit in his eighth at bat – a three-run home run off Orioles reliever George Zuverink. In the eighth, he hiked his career average to .333 (3-for-9) with a three-run shot off Art Schallock.
Babe Birrer's 1956 Topps baseball card. By the time it was released, the pitcher had been claimed on waivers by the Baltimore Orioles, the team against whom he had his big day at the plate in 1955. (From Chuck Murr collection of baseball cards)
CHUCK MURR - Forbes.comThe back of "Babe" Birrer's card. From Chuck Murr's baseball card collection.
CHUCK MURR — Forbes.comBirrer had a 4-3 record and three saves for Detroit in 1955. He walked 29 and struck out only 28.
He never had another MLB win or loss. His only other MLB hits were three singles and a double in 1958 for the Los Angeles Dodgers, giving him a career average of .259 (7-for-27).
In the minors, he totaled 20 home runs and 104 RBI over 576 games and 18 seasons.
Birrer A Hall Of Famer!
Yep, it’s true.
Birrer was enshrined in the Buffalo Sports Hall of Fame in 1995. He grew up in the city, pitched at the University of Buffalo, and played for the minor-league Buffalo Bisons in 1953, 1955 and 1960 through 1966. He had a 51-51 record for the Bisons and minor-league mark of 125-119 according to baseball-reference.com
PITTSBURGH: James (Pud) Galvin, star pitcher for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1889. (Photo by Mark Rucker/Transcendental Graphics, Getty Images)
Getty ImagesThat put him in outstanding company. Baseball Hall of Famer James (Pud Galvin) had a 218-179 record for Buffalo’s National League team in 1879-84, winning 46 games in both 1883 and '84. Overall, he had a 365-310 record.
Hall of Famers Galvin, second baseman Nellie Fox and outfielder Rickey Henderson are among 78 MLB players born on Christmas Day.
Nicknamed ‘The Babe’
A big day at the plate has led to teammates calling a guy “The Babe”. Only a handful somewhat lived up to the marvelous moniker.
One of them had it years before Ruth did. Charles (Babe) Adams got his nickname in the minors, then compiled a 194-140 pitching record for the St. Louis Cardinals (0-1 in 1906) and the next 18 years for the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Five other Pirates started more games than the 12 he did in 1909. He had a 12-3 record and 1.11 ERA, then won Games 1, 5 and 7 of the World Series against Detroit. He gave up 4 runs over 27 innings and held the great Ty Cobb to one single in 11 at bats.
Outfielder Floyd (Babe) Herman hit .324 with 181 homers and 997 RBI for four teams over 13 seasons. His best year was 1931 for the Brooklyn Dodgers: .393, 35 homers, 143 runs and 130 RBI.
Supremely talented, his bizarre base-running blunders and mistakes in the field were legendary.
DETROIT: Lou Gehrig (left) and Babe Dahlgren of the New York Yankees at Briggs Stadium on May 2, 1939. Gehrig voluntarily sat out against the Detroit Tigers, ending his career and replaced by Dahlgren.
Bettmann ArchiveFirst baseman Ellsworth (Babe) Dahlgren had an ordinary MLB 12-year career for eight clubs. He’s known as the player who replaced Lou Gehrig in the New York Yankees’ lineup in 1939 when the great player’s career and remarkable consecutive games streak ended at 2,130.
Dahlgren went 2-for-5 with a two-run homer in his first game that year, a 22-2 rout of the Detroit Tigers.
It will be tough to match Birrer’s bizarre feat, Dahlgren’s place in history, and there may never be a player with the success and charisma of Ruth. Ohtani’s exploits on the mound, at the plate and box office come close. His bank account far surpasses them all, yet Ruth remains the only ballplayer truly worthy of being called “The Babe”.
This article was originally published on Forbes.com