“Baseball changes through the years. It gets milder.”
- February 6, 1895 – August 16, 1948
- American
- Professional Baseball Player, Hall of Famer, Sports Icon
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Quote
“Baseball changes through the years. It gets milder.”
Explanation
This quote expresses Babe Ruth’s observation of how the game of baseball evolved over time, becoming less intense or less aggressive in his eyes. The word “milder” suggests that the raw energy, toughness, or perhaps even the danger of the sport had diminished, reflecting a shift in both style and spirit. Ruth, who played during a rugged, often chaotic era of early 20th-century baseball, likely viewed modern changes as a softening of the game’s edge.
During Ruth’s era, baseball was known for its gritty atmosphere, fierce rivalries, and unfiltered personalities. Pitchers threw inside without hesitation, equipment was less protective, and the game was governed more by player instinct than analytics. By the end of his career and certainly in the years that followed, rules were adjusted, safety increased, and the culture of the game began to reflect a more polished, regulated sport. Ruth’s comment acknowledges this generational shift, perhaps with a touch of nostalgia or disapproval.
Today, this quote resonates in conversations about how tradition meets modernity. Just as in other areas—music, politics, education—change often brings improvement, but also a sense of loss for those who lived through the earlier, wilder days. Ruth’s words remind us that progress can come with trade-offs, and that even in beloved institutions like baseball, the passage of time reshapes the character of the game itself.
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