Books and articles about Jake Ruppert

A colonel in the seventh regiment of the National Guard, Ruppert was a member of the New York social register and a lifelong bachelor. He went to work in the family brewery at 19 and was elected to four terms in Congress beginning in 1898. He became president of the brewery in 1915. At the suggestion of John McGraw, Ruppert and Tillinghast Huston, an engineer who had made a fortune in Cuba, bought the Yankees in 1914 for $450,000. When Ruppert hired Miller Huggins as manager in 1917 against Huston's wishes (Huston was in Europe), a rift developed between the partners.

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RELATED LINKS Submissions » Yankee Stadium's First Opening Day by Harvey Frommer » Yankee Stadium's First Opening Day by Harvey Frommer » The Worst (Best for the Yankees) Deal in Baseball History: Harry Frazee Sells Babe Ruth to New York by Harvey Frommer

The hiring of Huggins, the acquisition of Babe Ruth in 1919, and the selection of Ed Barrow as general manager in 1920 were the most important moves in turning the Yankees into a powerhouse. Ruppert let Huggins and Barrow handle the day-to-day affairs of the club, although he designed the Yankees' famous pinstripe uniform (in hopes it would make the bulky Ruth look slimmer). Yankee Stadium was opened in 1923 at a cost of $2.5 million. Shortly thereafter, Ruppert bought out Huston for $1.2 million.

With the Yankees dominating the AL in the late 1930s, Ruppert \] x x answered proposals that the team should be broken up: "I found out a long time ago there is no charity in baseball. Every club owner must make his own fight for existence. I went into baseball purely for the fun of it. I had no idea I would spend so much money ... the only return I ever sought was to make ends meet." (NLM)

FROM THE BASEBALL CHRONOLOGY » December 31, 1914: Ban Johnson's efforts to strengthen the New York Yankees succeed when he arranges the purchase of the team by Colonel Jacob Ruppert and Cap Huston for $460,000 from Bill Devery and Frank Farrell. After Detroit owner Navin refuses to let Hugh Jennings go, the new Yankee owners will name longtime Detroit pitcher Bill Donovan as manager. Donovan was recently manager of Providence (IL). » October 26, 1917: Miller Huggins, who managed the Cardinals to a 3rd-place finish, is signed to run the Yankees by owner Jake Ruppert. Co-owner Til Huston, who favored Wilbert Robinson for the job, has a falling out with partner Ruppert and will sell his half interest to Ruppert in 1923. » September 18, 1920: National League directors meet in New York, joined by Jacob Ruppert, Cap Huston, Charles Comiskey, and Harry Frazee of the American League. They name a committee to draw up an agreement along the lines of Albert Lasker's proposal, and give the five AL clubs still backing Ban Johnson an ultimatum: come in by November 1st or the Yankees, White Sox, and Red Sox will pull out of the AL and join a 12-team NL (with a team in Detroit to complete the roster). The AL five turns it down, and bluff and counterbluff blow through the autumn air. » September 28, 1920: The Illinois grand jury indicts the eight Chicago players in the 1919 World Series scandal, and Charles Comiskey immediately suspends the seven players (Chick Gandil had retired before the season). Yankees owners Jacob Ruppert and Cap Huston send a telegram to Chicago owner Charles Comiskey offering to place their entire team at his disposal, following the suspension of eight players in the scandal. Comiskey says he cannot accept the proposal. » December 12, 1922: Jake Ruppert agrees to buy out his partner Colonel Huston and gains full control of the Yankees. » May 21, 1923: Formal transfer of T.L. Huston's interest in the Yankees to Jake Ruppert is completed for $1.5 million. Ten days later Ruppert buys two more sets of uniforms so his players can wear a clean outfit every day, an unprecedented move. » August 29, 1925: After a night on the town, Babe Ruth shows up late for batting practice. Miller Huggins suspends Ruth and slaps a $5,000 fine on him for disobeying orders on the field and team rules off the field. In the showdown between the Bambino and the tiny manager, Jake Ruppert backs up his manager. Ruth is forced to apologize before he's reinstated nine days later. The day after his return to the lineup, Ruth hits HR number 300. » May 19, 1929: At New York, Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig hit back-to-back homers in the 3rd off Boston's Jack Russell but in the 5th a cloudburst at Yankee Stadium sends a standing-room-only crowd rushing for the exits. A stampede in the RF bleachers leaves two dead, 62 injured. Jake Ruppert vows never again to sell more tickets than seats. There are two outs in the 5th when the game is stopped at 3–0. » November 13, 1931: Jacob Ruppert, Yankee owner, buys the Newark franchise in the International League. During the decade the Bears will dominate the league and send a steady stream of players to New York. » December 29, 1933: Yankees owner Jake Ruppert refuses to release Babe Ruth so he can become manager of the Cincinnati Reds. » January 13, 1939: Yankee owner Colonel Jacob Ruppert dies of phlebitis at age 71. On the 17th, Ed Barrow is elected president to succeed Colonel Ruppert. » January 25, 1945: The Yankees are sold by the Ruppert estate to Larry MacPhail, Dan Topping, and Del Webb for $2.8 million. For that price the trio obtains 400 players, 266 of them in military service, Yankee Stadium, parks in Newark and Kansas City, and leases on other minor league ballparks. Jake Ruppert, who died in 1939, paid more than the new purchase price for the ground on which Yankee Stadium was built in 1923.