1
00:00:01,167 --> 00:00:03,503
- Red Sox fans got 
spoiled after 1912.

2
00:00:03,503 --> 00:00:06,039
The Red Sox were in the 
World Series in 1912.

3
00:00:06,039 --> 00:00:10,243
They were also in the World 
Series in '15, '16, and 1918.

4
00:00:10,243 --> 00:00:14,014
The big star, of course, 
during this era was Babe Ruth,

5
00:00:14,014 --> 00:00:16,583
who joined the team in 1915.

6
00:00:16,583 --> 00:00:18,451
- He was a great pitcher,

7
00:00:18,451 --> 00:00:20,020
you know, he was 
a 23-game winner,

8
00:00:20,020 --> 00:00:21,988
and that's where he is doing 
most of his damage then,

9
00:00:21,988 --> 00:00:23,990
but the hitting's 
starting to take hold.

10
00:00:25,458 --> 00:00:28,928
And then the Red Sox committed 
the original sin of baseball.

11
00:00:28,928 --> 00:00:32,365
That is, they traded Babe 
Ruth to the Yankees for cash.

12
00:00:32,365 --> 00:00:34,934
They won five of the 
first 15 World Series.

13
00:00:34,934 --> 00:00:37,637
They were the greatest 
team in all of baseball.

14
00:00:37,637 --> 00:00:40,006
And after the trade of 
Ruth, they don't win again

15
00:00:40,006 --> 00:00:41,674
for 86 years.

16
00:00:41,674 --> 00:00:44,477
That became what 
the Red Sox carried

17
00:00:44,477 --> 00:00:46,946
around, the curse 
of the Bambino.

18
00:00:46,946 --> 00:00:51,785
- Babe Ruth was a 
incredibly talented player.

19
00:00:51,785 --> 00:00:54,054
No one, however, 
could have predicted

20
00:00:54,054 --> 00:00:55,789
at the time that Babe Ruth,

21
00:00:55,789 --> 00:00:59,325
in lowercase letters, 
would be Babe Ruth,

22
00:00:59,325 --> 00:01:01,728
in neon with lights 
flashing on it.

23
00:01:01,728 --> 00:01:05,465
When he got to New York, 
he became Babe Ruth.

24
00:01:07,333 --> 00:01:11,104
The paperwork detailing 
the sale of Ruth

25
00:01:11,104 --> 00:01:13,807
from the Red Sox to 
the Yankees is now

26
00:01:13,807 --> 00:01:16,976
in Cooperstown at the National 
Baseball Hall of Fame.

27
00:01:22,148 --> 00:01:24,751
- It's fascinating to see 
the impact Babe Ruth had

28
00:01:24,751 --> 00:01:26,252
on American life.

29
00:01:26,252 --> 00:01:29,422
He grew up a poor kid in 
my hometown of Baltimore,

30
00:01:29,422 --> 00:01:31,524
but after he was 
sold to the Yankees,

31
00:01:31,524 --> 00:01:34,360
he became the most 
famous person in America.

32
00:01:34,360 --> 00:01:37,063
It seems like baseball 
itself exploded

33
00:01:37,063 --> 00:01:40,767
in popularity once Ruth 
started hitting home runs.

34
00:01:40,767 --> 00:01:42,635
So what was the 
curse of the bambino?

35
00:01:42,635 --> 00:01:45,004
- Well, it is the superstition

36
00:01:45,004 --> 00:01:47,707
that when Babe Ruth was 
sold to the Yankees,

37
00:01:47,707 --> 00:01:51,377
that he cursed the Red Sox to 
not win another World Series.

38
00:01:51,377 --> 00:01:53,813
And they didn't for 
another 84 years.

39
00:01:53,813 --> 00:01:55,315
And in that time,

40
00:01:55,315 --> 00:01:57,083
the Yankees not only won their 
first World Championship,

41
00:01:57,083 --> 00:01:59,385
they won a total of 
26 World Championships

42
00:01:59,385 --> 00:02:01,287
before the Red Sox 
broke their curse.

43
00:02:01,287 --> 00:02:03,356
- Do you think that was 
a pretty good curse then?

44
00:02:03,356 --> 00:02:06,326
- Well, I can't say I'm 
a believer in curses,

45
00:02:06,326 --> 00:02:08,261
but it does make 
for a good story.

46
00:02:08,261 --> 00:02:10,830
- So as good as he was, 
why would the owner

47
00:02:10,830 --> 00:02:13,900
of the Red Sox wanna sell 
'em to the New York Yankees?

48
00:02:13,900 --> 00:02:15,602
- Well, it has a lot 
of things in baseball.

49
00:02:15,602 --> 00:02:17,103
It all comes down to money,

50
00:02:17,103 --> 00:02:19,939
and well, Babe Ruth 
wanted more money.

51
00:02:19,939 --> 00:02:22,208
- So what did the owner 
of the Red Sox say?

52
00:02:22,208 --> 00:02:25,211
- He put his foot down and he 
wasn't willing to renegotiate,

53
00:02:25,211 --> 00:02:27,881
and so he decided to 
sell him to the Yankees.

54
00:02:27,881 --> 00:02:30,783
Right here, this is 
his transfer agreement.

55
00:02:30,783 --> 00:02:34,521
So this is the American 
League okaying the sale

56
00:02:34,521 --> 00:02:36,289
from Boston to New York.

57
00:02:36,289 --> 00:02:40,093
- So it was $100,000, 
25,000 each year.

58
00:02:40,093 --> 00:02:41,327
I see.

59
00:02:41,327 --> 00:02:42,862
Would you say that was 
the best investment

60
00:02:42,862 --> 00:02:44,130
in baseball history?

61
00:02:44,130 --> 00:02:45,465
- It is definitely 
a pretty good one.

62
00:02:45,465 --> 00:02:48,101
I think the Yankees 
took a gamble and they,

63
00:02:48,101 --> 00:02:50,103
I think they won that gamble.

64
00:02:50,103 --> 00:02:53,573
(offbeat uplifting music)