Hall Automotive: This Week in 1926- October 2–8, 1926 – Babe Ruth, the World Series and One Unfortunate Chevrolet Showroom

Sometimes history gives you a story that’s almost too perfect. This is one of them.

One hundred years ago this week, the St. Louis Cardinals were playing the New York Yankees in the 1926 World Series. The Yankees had Babe Ruth. The Cardinals were appearing in their first World Series. And during one remarkable afternoon in St. Louis, Babe Ruth hit three home runs. One of them reportedly ended up somewhere a Chevrolet dealer definitely didn’t want it.

The 1926 World Series opened October 2 at Yankee Stadium. More than 61,000 spectators packed the stadium as the Yankees defeated St. Louis 2–1. The Cardinals responded the following day, winning Game 2 behind pitcher Grover Cleveland Alexander. The series then moved west to St. Louis. That’s when things became interesting.

Game 4 was played at Sportsman’s Park on October 6. Babe Ruth stepped to the plate in the first inning and hit a home run. Then he did it again in the third. And again in the sixth. Three home runs in one World Series game. It was an extraordinary performance.

But here’s the part that caught our attention. According to historical accounts of the game, one of Ruth’s home runs cleared the right-field bleachers, traveled across Grand Avenue, and smashed through the show window of a Chevrolet dealership.

As a company whose Wisconsin story began as a Chevrolet dealership in 1926, we couldn’t possibly let the 100th anniversary of that moment pass unnoticed. Somewhere in St. Louis, while one Chevrolet dealer was probably admiring Babe Ruth’s performance, someone else was figuring out how much a new showroom window was going to cost.

There was something else happening during that World Series that was just as important. Americans didn’t necessarily have to be in the stadium to experience it. Radio was transforming sports. Families could gather around a radio hundreds of miles away and follow games as they unfolded. Think about the progression since then.

First came newspaper reports.

Then radio.

Then television.

Then cable and satellite broadcasts.

Today we can watch a baseball game live on a phone while sitting almost anywhere in the world. In 1926, radio was creating that sense of instant connection for the first time.

Baseball and automobiles became deeply woven into twentieth-century American life. The family trip to the ballpark. Little League equipment thrown in the trunk. The radio broadcast playing during a summer drive. Road trips to see a favorite team. They became ordinary parts of American life.

But in 1926, much of that culture was still being created. Hall was beginning its first year serving Wisconsin motorists at exactly the same time.

There are moments in history that seem impossibly distant. And then there’s a story about Babe Ruth hitting a baseball through the window of a Chevrolet dealership. Suddenly, 1926 doesn’t feel quite so far away. One hundred years later, baseball is still being played. Chevrolet is still building vehicles. Wisconsin families are still driving to games. And Hall is still in the automobile business. We just hope our showroom windows have better luck.