Babe Ruth ‘Called Shot’ jersey sells for record $24.12 million

It’s up to historians to decide whether Babe Ruth truly called his shot.

But one thing is certain.

When Heritage Auctions announced in May it would be selling the jersey Ruth wore during that famous 1932 World Series game, the auction house called a shot of its own by predicting it would become the most expensive piece of sports memorabilia ever sold.

The press release was Heritage’s version of pointing toward center field.

And the $24.12 million price tag when the auction ended around 5:30 a.m. ET Sunday?

That was the home run.

Although the hammer price fell short of Heritage's estimate of $30 million, the Ruth jersey still set a new standard for the hobby.

And with a bidding war dramatically raging for more than six hours in the extended bidding hours Saturday night into Sunday morning, the Ruth jersey sold for more than twice the previous record for a game-used item.

“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," Heritage Heritage director of sports auctions Chris Ivy said. "The legend of Babe Ruth and the myth and mystery surrounding his 'Called Shot' are united in this one extraordinary artifact.”

CLLCT'S FULL COVERAGE OF HERITAGE SUMMER PLATINUM AUCTIONS:

The Stuff of Legend

In pursuit of his seventh World Series title and third in as many years, Ruth stepped up to the plate in the top of the fifth inning in Game 3 of the 1932 Fall Classic. The 49,986 fans at Wrigley Field chirped at the slugger in a cacophony of insults and taunts, possibly a response to comments Ruth made in a Chicago Daily Tribune Story before the series.

The stadium was so deafening, Cubs players were actually forced to step outside the dugout and cup their hands over the mouths to ensure Ruth could hear their trash talk.

Ruth's game-worn jersey from the 1932 World Series was the centerpiece of Heritage's Summer Platinum Sports Auction. (Credit: Heritage)

Cubs pitcher Charlie Root delivered a called first strike.

What happened next will forever be disputed, aided only by two poorly angled films (one of which was only discovered in the past 40 years).

The grainy footage and smattering of eye-witness accounts describe Ruth pointing toward the Cubs bench — or maybe Root himself, depending on who you ask.

He took another called strike, bringing the count to 0-2.

Once again, Ruth gestured, this time apparently in the direction of the center-field bleachers.

Root delivered a curveball, and Ruth sent the ball a reported 490 feet into the stands.

Could he have been pointing to the dugout again? To Root?

Possibly, there are certainly doubters.

Just a single news story from the game described the gesture as an intentional symbol meant to call his shot.

The headline for the story, which was circulated widely in outlets such as the New York World-Telegram, read: “Ruth Calls Shot As He Puts Home Run No. 2 In Side Pocket.”

Everyone has an opinion, but there’s only one person who truly knew. He was standing in the batters box.

“Well, I looked out to center field and I pointed. I said, ‘I’m going to hit the next pitched ball right past the flag pole.’“

Whether simply running with a good story or earnestly recounting an incredible feat, Ruth never wavered in his defense that he truly did call his shot.

History of the jersey

The history of the jersey worn that day is just as hazy.

For years, no records of its whereabouts were known. Then, a Florida woman emerged with a claim nearly as audacious as the "Called Shot" itself: Her father had won a Ruth jersey off the Babe in a golf bet.

She sold it in 1990 to Grey Flannel Auctions co-founder Andy Imperato.

Its next stop was in the hands of a private collector, who purchased it for $150,000.

In 1999, the collector returned to Grey Flannel and consigned the jersey in an auction which described it as a Ruth road uniform from 1930.

This time it fetched $284,000 and was loaned to the Babe Ruth Museum, still carrying the same description of a 1930 Ruth jersey.

No mention of the “Called Shot."

At this point Grey Flannel had seemingly become the go-to source for selling the mysterious jersey, so that’s exactly where it was brought in 2005 (for the third time).

Unlike the first two sales, this time the jersey’s description had evolved. It was billed for the first time as the “Called Shot” jersey.

The determination was made by the team at Grey Flannel, citing multiple elements of the sewing and shape of the lettering and positioning to claim it matched to one of sport’s legendary moments.

It sold for $940,000.

MORE ON THE "CALLED SHOT" JERSEY:

A question of authenticity

As photo-matching has emerged and become more sophisticated in the last 25 years, memorabilia prices have soared for items attached to a definitive match.

The incentives are clear. To get top dollar, a photo-match is the way forward.

But, contrary to the belief of some collectors, it is not an exact science. There will always be instances in which one company finds a match and another does not.

That’s exactly the dilemma which plagued the Ruth jersey in the lead-up to the auction.

As cllct first reported in July, the 2005 buyer of the jersey, Dr. Richard Angrist, an ophthalmologist from New Jersey, sent the jersey into Resolution Photomatching (one of the leading companies in the space) three times from 2019 to 2022 seeking the all-mighty “conclusive photo-match” letter that would propel the jersey to the stratosphere.

No such letter arrived.

Instead, Resolution was unable to issue a match on any of the occasions.

As Resolution founder John Robinson told cllct last month: “We passed up a very large sum of money and exponentially more value in publicity on this. We knew our very high-end client would be upset, and that if we didn't photo-match it, our competitors would get the opportunity.”

Darren Rovell talks about the Babe Ruth 'Called Shot' jersey, which sold for a record $24.12 million at Heritage.

Angist was not deterred, however, bringing the jersey to another company called End-to-End. Little known in the industry at the time and lacking any discernible history of matching valuable jerseys, the company returned a match in 2022.

The next year, MeiGray (another leader in the space, along with Resolution) joined in on the determination, issuing a match of its own.

Soon after, collectible authenticator PSA acquired End-to-End in a surprising move, considering the company’s limited history.

The original listing of the “Called Shot” jersey on Heritage did not include any mention of the three submissions to Resolution — although a letter from Resolution was later added to the lot.

When asked about the matter by cllct, Heritage's Ivy expressed unbridled confidence in the jersey’s documentation. He went on to say the opinion of Resolution, the company which has matched more of the most valuable jerseys in Heritage’s history, “is of no relevance in the matter.”

Ivy believed someone could be drumming up drama in order to "potentially damage the auction performance of this extensively authenticated and matched historic jersey -- perhaps in an effort to cool interest or bidding confidence in order to secure the piece at a more modest number."

Notably, Heritage has a Roberto Clemente jersey listed in an upcoming auction accompanied by a Resolution letter of opinion.

The Impact

Despite the disagreements over the match, consensus remains this is indeed a Ruth game-worn jersey.

“Called Shot” or not, that is as big as it gets for game-worn collectors, with the exception of only Michael Jordan, whose material is far more common.

It’s easy to understand the desirability of a Ruth jersey from the standpoint of his historic status. But there’s another factor that plays into the market and value of his jerseys which is just as responsible for driving sky-high prices such as the previous record, held by a Ruth jersey sold at Hunt Auctions in 2019 for $5.64 million.

Players of the era were not given access to the same endless slew of jerseys as the athletes of today.

A jersey or two were issued for home games and road games and were to be used throughout the season, with few exceptions. So, in 15 years with the Yankees, Ruth could have worn less than 40 jerseys. But even that minuscule number is no longer accurate.

Over the years, most have disappeared. Many have simply vanished. Others, such as a pinstripe jersey which Donruss publicly sliced up in order to insert into baseball cards, were more public in their disappearance.

The end result is somewhere around six game-worn Ruth jerseys in public institutions and private collections surviving today.

Over the past few years, prices for game-worn jerseys have exploded — prior to the Ruth sale, the record for any jersey belonged to the $10.1 million paid in September 2022 for Michael Jordan's jersey from Game 1 of the 1998 NBA Finals.

Even so, Ruth’s jerseys remained front of mind for many, especially the few who could afford to buy. (A total of 17 bidders placed bids on the lot at Heritage.)

But there was simply no opportunity.

The Hall of Fame isn’t selling theirs any time soon and neither are most collectors, who see a Ruth jersey as something more akin to a piece of rare art than an item of sports memorabilia.

So, when the time arrived to jump on a Ruth gamer — particularly one many believe to be tied to the “Called Shot” — collectors opened up their wallets, driving the no-reserve auction past the Jordan record sale price days before the auction ended.

For their money, they got more than just a jersey.

More than some fabric held together with threads.

They bought a moment in history. And quite a story to go along with it.

Will Stern is a reporter and editor for cllct.