Latin America had gotten involved in the game, and in spite of the fact that most countries there could not immediately rival in performance their Northern counterparts, their passion for it certainly competed with that of the U.S.
By comparison, the Cubans had been unimpressed with the evolution of baseball in the U.S., and with the evolution of Babe Ruth altogether. This had mainly been because the baseball fields in Cuba had been larger than the ones in the U.S. Also, while Babe Ruth's trip to Japan had had a strong influence on people over there, the American superstar's journey in Cuba had been different.
Shortly after the Babe joined the Yankees, the American team went to Cuba to play against the Cuban team. Cristobal Torriente had been the local baseball superstar at the time and the Cubans did not hesitate to prove that they, too, had good baseball players. The game went terrible for Ruth, with Torriente having three home runs while the American team had none. Surprisingly, while Babe Ruth had been paid $2,000 for every game that he played in Cuba, Torriente had only received 200 pesos with the help of his teammates who passed through the spectators with their caps held out. Cubans then concluded that Ruth's fame had been mainly owed to the fact that the baseball fields in the U.S. had been smaller than the ones in Cuba. Another rumor relating to Ruth's disappointing performance during his stay in Cuba had been that the pitchers intentionally threw bad balls, being afraid that the powerful American would disgrace them.
Babe Ruth had reached an almost supernatural statute at the time when he played in Cuba. The Cubans had not only thought of bringing him to their country in order to promote the game, they also did so thinking of the financial benefits that would arise as a result of his coming into the country. Not only did the Cubans pay a salary of $2,000 / per game to Ruth, but the baseball player was well taken care of during his stay in the country. The 1920's had been a period when prohibition had been flourishing...
Cuba, in contrast, had been a place where alcohol and gambling had been common, thus keeping Ruth happy the whole time he spent there.
It appears that Babe Ruth's influence had been beneficial in the countries where he had a lot of fans. People have started to lose interest in the game in the late 1920s, and the professional league in Cuba had almost been abandoned, both by players and sponsors.
Every baseball playing country in the world considers Babe Ruth to be an American emblem. Throughout the 1920s and the 1930 he made history and people everywhere admired him, regardless of their country's relations with the U.S.
Works cited:
1. Gonzalez Echevarria, Roberto, The Pride of Havana: A History of Cuban Baseball (New York: Oxford University Press, 1999) 116.
2. Rielly, Edward J., Baseball: An Encyclopedia of Popular Culture (Lincoln, NE: University of Nebraska Press, 2005) 146.
3. Ruck, Rob, The Tropic of Baseball: Baseball in the Dominican Republic (Lincoln, NE: University of Nebraska Press, 1999) 28.
4. Sullivan, Dean A., and Dean A. Sullivan, eds., Middle Innings: A Documentary History of Baseball, 1900-1948 (Lincoln, NE: University of Nebraska Press, 2001) 237.
Dean A. Sullivan, and Dean A. Sullivan, eds., Middle Innings: A Documentary History of Baseball, 1900-1948 (Lincoln, NE: University of Nebraska Press, 2001) 237.
Edward J. Rielly, Baseball: An Encyclopedia of Popular Culture (Lincoln, NE: University of Nebraska Press, 2005) 146.
Rob Ruck, The Tropic of Baseball: Baseball in the Dominican Republic (Lincoln, NE: University of Nebraska Press, 1999) 28.
Roberto Gonzalez Echevarria, The Pride of Havana: A History of Cuban Baseball (New York: Oxford University Press, 1999) 116.
Roberto Gonzalez Echevarria, The Pride of Havana: A History of Cuban Baseball (New York: Oxford University Press, 1999) 116.
idem idem
