More than 90 years after he retired from professional baseball, Babe Ruth continues to set records.
The jersey worn by the New York Yankees legend when he “called his shot” to center field during Game 3 of the 1932 World Series was sold by Dallas firm Heritage Auctions this week for an eye-watering $24,120,000 US, smashing records for the most expensive game-worn jersey and the most expensive piece of sports memorabilia ever sold.
Ruth wore the road grey jersey with “NEW YORK” arched across the front in navy blue letters and the number 3 on the back during the World Series game against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field.
It has been extensively photo-matched and authenticated twice. According to Heritage Auctions, Ruth gave the jersey to a golfing friend in Florida in the 1940s. It remained with the friend’s daughter until the 1990s when an unknown collector bought it for a six-figure sum. It was later consigned to auction in 2005, where it sold for $940,000.
In a time before games were televised, fans relied on newspaper reporters to describe what happened at road games. According to Heritage Auctions, newspaper editor Joe Williams wrote the headline crediting Ruth with calling his shot when he gestured toward center field in the fifth inning and then hit a home run to that same part of the stadium on the next pitch. Some low-quality video of the at-bat exists but doesn’t definitively show where the home run ball landed.
Nevertheless, it’s a moment that has become endlessly celebrated and imitated in the 92 years since.
“It has been an honor and a privilege to work with this incredible piece of American history, and I am proud that it will now be part of one of the finest private collections in the world. It is clear by the strong auction participation and record price achieved that astute collectors have no doubt as to what this Ruth jersey is and what it represents. The legend of Babe Ruth and the myth and mystery surrounding his ‘called shot’ are united in this one extraordinary artifact.”
— Heritage Auctions director of sport Chris Ivy (via press release)
While the final price was short of the $30 million estimates thrown around before the auction closed, it still more than doubled the previous record for the most expensive game-worn jersey ever sold. A jersey worn by Michael Jordan in Game 1 of the 1998 NBA Finals previously held that record, which went for $10.1 million in an auction in September 2022. The previous record for the most expensive sports collectible ever sold was held by a 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle rookie card, which Heritage Auctions sold for $12.6 million in August 2022.
