October 14, 1928: Ruth & Gehrig In Montreal

October 14, 1928: Fresh off their 3rd straight World Series appearance and 2nd straight win, Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig of the New York Yankees bring their "barnstorming" tour to Delorimier Stadium, the new 20,000-seat home of the International League's Montreal Royals.

They would play for Ahuntsic, a semi-pro team from the north side of the city (Montréal-Nord), against the Chappies, a team of black American players led by George "Chappie" Johnson, the top catcher in black baseball in the 1900s and 1910s.

Bad weather held the crowd to 16,000, but they were thrilled when Ruth hit 5 balls over the fence in batting practice. The actual game was tight, and the Babe came in to pitch. In the top of the 9th, Gehrig hit a home run to give Ahuntsic the lead, and the fans rushed the field, making the bottom of the 9th unplayable.

People who favor the modern game of baseball -- and people who simply hate the Yankees -- love to point out that Ruth and Gehrig never played against black players, since black players weren't allowed in the major leagues until 1947. But tours like this render the argument a half-truth. They did face black players, albeit not in regular-season competition or in the World Series. But, on some occasions, it was on a black team's home field, in front of mostly-black crowds, in conditions that favored the all-black teams. And their pitchers couldn't stop the Sultan of Swat and the Iron Horse any more than the white pitchers could.

This ballpark, also known as Delorimier Downs, Montreal Stadium and Hector Racine Stadium, would be home to the Royals from 1928 until their dissolution after the 1960 season; and the Canadian Football League's Montreal Alouettes from 1946 to 1953. A survey was done to determine if it could be used as the home of the expansion Montreal Expos in 1969, but it was determined that the stadium was already in such bad shape, they might as well build a new one elsewhere. That became Jarry Park. The old one was torn down in 1971, and a high school was built on the site.

After Montreal, Ruth and Gehrig went on to Hull, Quebec, across the Ottawa River from the national capital of Ottawa, and, on October 15 at Dupuis Park, beat a team that included brothers Frank Boucher of the New York Rangers and Georges "Buck" Boucher of the Ottawa Senators, both members of the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Then they headed back to the U.S., touring the Midwest and the West, before their planned finale in Denver on Halloween was rained out. MLB rules said that barnstorming tours must be completed by October 31. This was before Bud Selig was born, allowing baseball games after that date.

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October 14, 1928 was a Sunday. Héctor Rial was born that day. The Argentine forward helped Nacional win Uruguay's league in 1952, before being purchased by Real Madrid. With them, he won 5 La Liga titles, and the 1st 5 European Cups, 1956 to 1960.

And these games were played in the NFL:

* The football version of the New York Yankees (like the Giants, containing no players from the baseball team for whom they were named) lost to the Detroit Wolverines, 35-12 at Yankee Stadium.

* The New York Giants lost to the Chicago Bears, 13-0 at Wrigley Field in Chicago.

* The Providence Steam Roller beat the Dayton Triangles, 28-0 at the Providence Cycledrome in Rhode Island. Always without the S on the end ("Roller," not "Rollers"), Providence would win the NFL Championship that season. It would take another 73 years for another NFL team based in New England to take the title.

* And the Green Bay Packers beat the Chicago Cardinals, 20-0 at City Stadium in Green Bay, Wisconsin.