Babe Ruth knocked unconscious July 5, 1924
On a sunny July day in Washington, 1924, the Yankees were in Griffith Stadium, playing against the Washington Senators.
In the fourth inning of the first game, before 24,000 fans, the home team’s Joe Judge swung his bat; the ball sailed just over the right-field line, heading toward the bleachers in foul territory.
Racing to make the catch, Babe Ruth slammed into a concrete wall and was knocked unconscious.
Note the racial segregation in this photo.
As it happened, Ruth collapsed next to the section reserved for African-Americans.
The Yankees’ trainer, Doc Woods, rushed to Babe Ruth with a first-aid kit and poured icy water onto his face.
Ruth was out for five anxiety-producing minutes.
The District of Columbia police (led by one Captain Doyle) kept the curious and concerned at bay.
When the Babe finally opened his eyes, the Yankees’ manager, Miller Huggins, offered to take him out, but Ruth would not hear of it.
Ruth went back into the game, showing a conspicuous limp (he had damaged his left hip) as he recorded two more hits, drawing louder cheers than usual, for his fortitude, as he rounded the bases. He even kept playing through the second game.
I find your inference of 'racial segregation' rather pathetic, mostly racist itself, and indicative of the issues we struggle with today. My first thought, especially considering it is 1924, was 'look at the diverse crowd'. There are at least a half dozen whites mixed in that crowd, and they dont seem too upset about being next to a black. If anything, these are the RF cheap seats, and socioeconomic conditions would probably imply more attention from the working class, a large portion of which, especially in Washington DC, are african american. Lets stop with the narrative and stop demeaning the african american community by assuming they are at the game in some segregated manner.
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