On August 11th, 1929, Babe Ruth became the first MLB player to reach the 500 homer plateau, as he clubbed dinger number 500 against the Cleveland Indians at Dunn Field. When Ruth hit number 500, his closest rival in career home runs was 41-year old Cy Williams of the Philadelphia Phillies, who hit 259 home runs at that point, barely half of the 34-year old Ruth’s career total.

     The centerpiece of this sports page from the August 12, 1929 edition of The Scranton Sun is an illustration of Ruth smashing his 500th home run, as well as an article about the game. The article mentions how Ruth paid the boy who caught his 500th home run $20 for the hallowed ball. Near this is an article by renowned sportswriter Grantland Rice about a golf tournament in Pebble Beach. In addition, there are many box scores from the previous day in baseball. Interestingly, the Yankees-Indians box score and the Athletics-Tigers box score are switched, and placed under the wrong summary of the game. Many Hall of Famers, including Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Heinie Manush, Pie Traynor, Jimmie Foxx, Charlie Gehringer, and Rogers Hornsby are featured in this day’s box scores. This newspaper measures 17 x 22 inches, and is slightly yellowed with age. It is in good condition, with only minor wear and tear around the edges. Goldin Auctions will be donating 5% of the winning bid price of this lot and all lots in this auction to the Babe Ruth Birthplace Museum.

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