Babe Ruth’s First Professional Home Run

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Yep, it happened in Toronto.

 

The Toronto Maple Leafs baseball club formed in 1896, decades before the hockey team of the same name. Owned by the Toronto Ferry Company, the club played at a series of stadiums erected at Hanlan’s Point on the Toronto Islands, allowing them to charge for ferry travel in addition to admission to the ballpark.

 

The third and final edition of Hanlan’s Point Stadium became famous as the site of Babe Ruth’s first professional home run in 1914. Ruth played for the Providence Grays at the time, and most historians think he smacked the ball over the right-field wall, sending it soaring over the rollercoaster of the neighbouring amusement park to land with a splash in the lake.

1914

Babe Ruth Hits His First Home Run in Toronto

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