Colonel Ruppert – Now a member of the Hall: Today, baseball fans up in Cooperstown, NY are celebrating the induction of the latest members to the Baseball Hall of Fame. One of the newest members is none other than one of the men who was key to changing the face of the Yankees forever – one-time club owner, Colonel Jacob Ruppert. At the time of Ruppert’s purchase of the ball club, the Yankees were consistently in the bottom half of the American League. But, in 1920, it all changed with the purchase of young phenom – Babe Ruth – from the Boston Red Sox. From that point, the fate of the Yankees changed significantly. The Yankees won their first pennant in 1921 and thanks to the Babe, began to outdraw their NY rival, the Giants. The increased box numbers encouraged Ruppert to buy out his partner, Huston, and to build his own stadium, which came to be known as the “House That Ruth Built”.
During Ruppert’s tenure as owner, the Yankees won 10 Pennants and 6 World Series Championships. The Yankees now have a total 40 pennants and 27 World Series titles and are the most successful and well-recognized American sports franchise. A lot of this can be attributed to Colonel Ruppert and his most significant investment – Babe Ruth.
