A fellow Medium writer already wrote about this. Their article popped up in my feed the other day - Was Babe Ruth Black? I thought it was just clickbait. After reading it, I did a little more research. Turns out there is a lot of evidence that the Great Bambino may have been mixed race.
Appearance
This is by far the least compelling evidence but it’s something that a lot of people point to.
Many believe Ruth to have African ancestry because of his swarthy complexion, broad lips, wide nose, and dark brown eyes. As a child, Ruth was taunted over his appearance. His classmates often referred to him as “n***** lips.”
Babe continued to be a victim of racial slurs throughout his lifetime because of his appearance as will later find out.
Who's the daddy?
Babe Ruth’s parents, George Herman Ruth Sr. and Katherine Schamberger were both German immigrants. He even grew up speaking German. So that should kill the “was babe ruth black?” question pretty easily.
But there is speculation that Babe’s “dad” wasn’t really his dad. Katherine Schamberger, Ruth’s mom, was notorious for drinking a lot and sleeping around. George Herman Ruth Jr. might not actually be the son of George Herman Ruth Sr.
He dealt with racism
Ruth didn’t experience the same kind of racism that Jackie Robinson would face a few decades later. But he did experience racism, especially from fellow players. Many of his contemporaries referred to him as “n****r babe.”
There is a famous quote from Ty Cobb when asked why he refused to share a cabin with Ruth during a hunting trip in Georgia. Cobb responded, “I’ve never bedded down with a n****r and I’m not going to start now!”
There was also an incident that Ruth had with New York Giants’ Johnny Rawlings. During a 1922 World Series game, Rawlings continuously shouted racial slurs at Ruth. After the game, Ruth burst into the locker room and challenged Rawlings to a fight. He yelled at Rawlings “I don’t mind being called a prick and a cocksucker but none of that personal stuff.” When Ruth noticed the baseball writers standing nearby he calmed himself down. He even begged reporters not to write about the incident.
He had an affinity towards black people.
Ruth associated with black people at a time when it was frowned upon. He engaged with black fans. He hung around Harlem, regularly frequenting the Cotton Club. He dated black women. He played against Negro League teams and Cuban League teams.
Some of his good friends were African Americans including boxer Joe Lewis, chef David Simpson, and famous dancer Bill “Bojangles” Robinson. It was said, that Robinson became the first African American to enter the New York Yankees clubhouse thanks to an invitation from Ruth.
During barnstorming tours where he played against Negro League teams, Ruth befriended black players like Satchel Paige and Buck O’Neil. He even sat in the “enemy’s” dugout. This made Kenesaw Mountain Landis, Major League Baseball’s commission at the time, furious. Landis hated that the face of Major League Baseball was fraternizing with black players.
Ruth didn’t care. After the Great Bambino retired in 1935, he received invitations to play exhibition games across the country. Guess what his first choice was? Dyckman Oval in Harlem against the New York Cubans.
He wanted to end segregation in baseball
It wasn’t until a year before his death that the color barrier in baseball was finally broken. Thanks to Jackie Robinson. If Babe had his way it would have ended sooner.
Ruth wanted to become a baseball manager after he retired. Landis didn’t let it happen. He barred Ruth from becoming manager because he thought that if Ruth became a manager he would try to sign black players. Landis, who was a raging racist, wanted to keep the baseball lily white. Ruth wanted segregation.
Final thoughts
None of this is evidence that Babe Ruth was part black. We will likely never know Ruth’s true ethnicity. And it doesn’t matter.
White or black, Ruth was a cultural icon and an interesting character.
Growing up I knew of Babe Ruth as the legendary baseball player and for the dreaded curse of the Bambino (I’m a Redsox fan). Later on, I learned about his off-field legend - the drinking, the brawling, the gambling, the womanizing.
It wasn’t till I did research for this article that I learned that Ruth quietly pushed for equality both on the field and off the field. That’s a side of Babe Ruth that no one ever talks about.