"McGraw, in ordering his pitchers to pitch to Ruth, took into consideration the psychology of Ruth. He knew what Ruth expected. He knew that Ruth would never look for anything but bad balls, and if he could upset Ruth by pitching to him, he would beat him, and by beating Ruth went a long way toward beating the Yankees. [...] Pitching to Ruth as Nehf did under McGraw's orders told Ruth and nearly 40,000 spectators that McGraw held Ruth only in contempt. It was not alone what Nehf pitched to Ruth but also what McGraw said to the batter, that crumbled Ruth: "Lay it over for him and tell him what's coming," McGraw yelled to Nehf. "Cut the plate for him. He can't hit it." Ruth, who considered this a bit of byplay, was dumbfounded when Nehf pitched and acted according to the shouted instructions. Ruth "never got over it," as they say. Ruth made two hits in 17 times at bat and finished with an average of .118. Ruth was an utter failure in the Series. He became a failure from the first time at bat, and the Giants' pitchers showed all too plainly that Ruth can easily be handled at bat. They did not pitch him a fast ball and they kept a slow ball low on him, curving it frequently. Ruth wilted and faded."
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Babe Ruth
George Herman Ruth (6 February 1895 – 16 August 1948) was an American Major League Baseball player from 1914 to 1935, named as the greatest baseball player in history in various surveys and rankings. His career record of 714 home runs stood for 39 years until surpassed by Hank Aaron with 755 home runs in 1974.
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