Hampton, Wilborn. Up Close: Babe Ruth. New York, NY: Penguin Group, 2009. Print.
Babe Ruth. An infamous name known worldwide and across generation upon generation. From backyard ball to the major leagues, Ruth led a life of passion and grit to become the legend he is known as today. The biography Up Close: Babe Ruth, by Wilborn Hampton, follows Ruth’s struggles and triumphs with lucid detail. Reading this biographical tale feels as if you are right there next to Ruth, watching over his actions and feeling the sorrow and happiness right there with him. Get to know the real George through this suspenseful tale of the intense highs and lows in this legend’s life. I recommend this book because it gives a detailed, all inclusive account of an inspirational figure’s legacy and provides insight into achieving personal success.
Beginning in Baltimore, Maryland, we observe Ruth’s tough beginnings as his parents become increasingly distant in his life; he lacks discipline and misbehaves often. After an event in his father’s saloon, he is sent to St. Mary’s Industrial School for Boys, where he finds a mentor in Brother Matthias, the athletic director who organized the baseball teams. Ruth starts playing baseball from a young age for St. Mary’s and, under the guidance of Brother Matthias, progresses into an up and coming superstar player. From St. Mary’s, Ruth progresses to the minor then major leagues and signs a contract with the Boston Red Sox. Written in third person limited, we are able to follow the events in his life with ease.
The main message I got out of reading this biography is that it takes a champion to wade through the lows in life and make the highs count. Ruth had so many hardships in his life, yet we all know him purely as one of the greatest baseball players of all time. He pursued his worth and made his playing and career count even though he was struggling with personal relationship issues and the effects of his early life. One of the instances that affected him emotionally was his ex-wife burning to death in a house fire. Even though he was devastated, he didn’t let it affect his game, continuing his MLB career and racking up records. Ruth showed us tough grit throughout his whole life and achieved the great things we know about him because of it.
The writer, Wilborn Hampton, did a good job in describing Ruth’s true personality. Hampton analyzes Ruth’s actions and explains that, for Ruth, it “was as though his fiery temper and his innate good-natured humor were in a constant struggle, and everyone around him held their breath waiting to see which would emerge” (119). Hampton then proceeds to give two examples of Ruth’s separate, contrasting reactions to emotional and physical pressure of fans on his performance. These detailed examples and analyses help the reader to understand the real Ruth and all that he had to deal with. This makes the biography a must-read because the accounts used from Ruth’s life explain why he reacted the way he did, and how he achieved success.
Yet, Hampton sometimes used baseball language without explaining what it meant. In describing Ruth’s performance in 1926, he said Ruth “batted .372, hit 47 homers, and had 155 RBIs” (149). While not a major problem, an explanation of what these terms meant could have made the novel a little more accessible to the general public. I had to look up the terms and it detracted from the message the author was trying to convey about Ruth’s current performance and his thoughts about it. This minor detail does not take away from the story and order of events however and can be overlooked easily.
Overall, I believe this book is a must read because it gives the reader an understanding of how Ruth came to be so great at what he did and inspires the will to take life head on. I believe readers of all ages can benefit from this insightful book because it provides examples as to why Ruth was so much more than just the famous baseball legacy he left behind. They say to not judge a book by it’s cover, and I admit I believed going into this novel that Ruth had nonstop fame and fortune and happiness because of how successful and passion-filled his life seemed. Yet, that’s just what came across to the public and was displayed on his “cover” because he was able to dig down deep and overcome deep-founded obstacles to become that legend. The real legendary truth in Ruth was the grit and determination he pursued that led to his results. I believe this novel is a must read because it encapsulates the full story of his life and gives the reader a true understanding of what it takes to be great. (795)
“Almost from the time he could walk, Ruth was constantly in trouble. For one thing, he had little supervision at home… his mother was not much of a presence in George’s life, and he was told not to make demands on her because of her delicate condition...Big George had no time for Little George either, [] telling him to go outside and play” (26-27).
This quote is towards the beginning of the novel and details the beginnings of Babe’s youth. His father owned a saloon and spent most of his time there, and after a violent incident there, authorities concluded it was unsafe for (Babe) Ruth to live there. Ruth was sent to St. Mary’s Industrial School for Boys. There he was able to acquire a steady education and a better sense of security, working jobs around the school when he entered his late teens. He became a shirtmaker and a carpenter there. He was introduced to their baseball program in his early teens and he apparently hit the ball so far it crashed through windows on the other side of the field/street. He kept going with baseball all the rest of his time there and found an interest in it.
While he found that baseball niche, he also was teased by the other boys for his large facial features and darker appearance than the rest of the white boys that went to the white only school, calling him names like niggerlips. His parents rarely visited him there, and his mother died when he was age 12. The teasing, with no parents or close ones to rely on, made him feel soulfully alone there. At St. Mary's, which George Jr. entered on June 13, 1902, he was recorded as "incorrigible". He would misbehave incessantly and did not find much discipline to fight against at that early age.
Babe became a great misbehaver because he lacked discipline and attention from a young age. His parents were always busy and didn’t give him the care he needed, so he developed into a kid that pretty much did whatever he wanted. He drank when his father wasn’t looking, and ran around on the streets (before he was sent to St. Mary’s). This may have played a part in his decision to use performance enhancing drugs later in life; from that young age he didn’t have much responsibility for his actions and that may have translated to him finding it acceptable to bend the rules of the sport.
Him being sent to St. Mary’s due to his lack of a stable household (as seen by the law) affected him in numerous ways. For one, since it was a catholic school, he became a lifelong Catholic and carried those values with him. He was also introduced to baseball, which stuck with him and he developed a name for himself on the St. Mary’s team. I believe he attached onto baseball so much because it was something of steady work and something that he received admiration from doing; I believe that left him with a close bond to it, and a sense of belonging.
“Brother Matthias’s primary job at St. Mary’s was to be in charge of discipline… [and] as athletic director, he also organized each dorm into baseball teams. [And,] if anything, Brother Matthias’s own prowess with a bat and a baseball made him an authority figure for the boys as much as his imposing presence” (37).
Brother Matthias was an extremely well-coordinated and athletic child that grew into a giant of a young man. Yet even though he had an imposing presence, he was a mild-mannered, soft-spoken, and patient man. He started playing baseball from a young age and he could have gone pro, yet he was highly religious. He had a period of religious training with the Xaverians, a relatively new order of Catholic brothers. He finished his novice ship and acquired his new name, Brother Matthias (originally Martin L. Boutlier). In 1894, he was assigned to St Mary’s in Baltimore.
At St. Mary’s, he became the athletic director. He coached and organized the baseball teams and after seeing Ruth play, he took an interest in him. Ruth interested Brother Matthias because he was the youngest boy in the sports program and looked like he had so much potential. Brother Matthias took him under his wing and mentored him in the sport, while at the same time being a real discipline figure in the boy’s life. Ruth admired Brother Matthias and respected his discipline.
I believe this mentorship from Brother Matthias inspired and guided Ruth towards greatness. Before he found Matthias, Ruth was just a goof off that didn’t take anything seriously. Yet when Matthias took an interest and disciplined him, Ruth started to shape up and pursue baseball and become a Catholic follower. Matthias was the changing point in Ruth’s life that brought him within reach of his life purpose; Matthias gave Ruth the support he needed to make a name for himself in baseball, which started his whole baseball career.
I think just seeing Matthias in action as the beast that he was inspired Ruth to slug those balls over the fence (as he did at almost every game in his major league career). Matthias was a true parental figure in Ruth’s life and his discipline taught Ruth that he needed to act professionally to make it in the real world. This discipline led Ruth to create his own vision of success as he ventured into the big leagues. Matthias changed Ruth’s life for the better and helped him find his purpose.
