1932 World Series

Anger, emotion and controversy were the big stories of the 1932 Series and that was before the first pitch was ever even thrown. Babe Ruth, the most beloved (and hated) player in all of baseball, lived up to his reputation by ripping apart the Chicago Cubs organization in the press while sticking up for one of his former teammates. Remembering the contributions of shortstop Mark Koenig to the Yankees' great teams of 1926-1928, several New York players berated the National League champions for only offering him a half-share of the World Series payoff. Although he had been a late-season acquisition, the former Yankee had batted .353 in thirty-three games for his new team and many felt that he was being cheated. Chicago tempers were also flared by the return of Joe McCarthy, who had been fired by the Cubs after the 1930 season. Many around the league had felt that the Yank's new skipper had been unfairly treated after winning the pennant in '29 and taking his team to second place the following year. However, many of his supporters quickly turned on him after he accepted a position with the hated American League powerhouse. Two years later he walked back onto Wrigley Field in a New York uniform determined to get the "last laugh" over his former employer. He certainly had the advantage this time as the Yankees won the first two games back home in the Bronx and were now locked in a 4-4 stalemate. What would follow has become one of the most memorable and controversial moments in the history of baseball...

With one out in the fifth, Babe Ruth stepped up to the plate and prepared to stare down Chicago's Charlie Root. "The Bambino" had launched a three-run rocket off of the Cub's veteran in the first, but took a called strike on the first pitch. Two balls and another strike followed as "The Babe" acknowledged it with a raised hand. Confident that a "K" was coming, the Cubs fans started taunting Ruth from the stands. As the noise level rose to a deafening roar, Ruth poi...

The 1932 World Series was played between the New York Yankees (American League) and the Chicago Cubs (National League), with the Yankees holding home field advantage. The Yankees swept the Cubs, four games to none. The series was otherwise noteworthy for Babe Ruth's "called shot," for his tenth and last World Series appearance overall, and for the arguments that developed between the two teams. The heated atmosphere started before the series even began.
In this Series played a record thirteen future Hall of Famers.