| Widely known for "5-o¡¯clock | | | | League players that were playing the game in the |
| lightning", the 1927 New York | | | | "Murderers¡¯ |
| Yankees boasted awesome offensive power. | | | | Row" era. These two players, however, |
| Intimidating all ofbaseball with the bats of Babe | | | | weren¡¯t all the ¡¯27 |
| Ruth and Lou Gehrig, this teamwas unstoppable. | | | | Yankees had. It seemed they had all the best |
| Many of their opponents built up hope slowlyin the | | | | players of thetime, and not just offensive players |
| early stages of a contest, only to be "struck" with | | | | but solid defensive playersas well. However, the |
| anunceasing barrage some time around | | | | most astonishing numbers from thisalleged |
| 5-o¡¯clock. Baseball gamesroutinely | | | | "greatest team ever" came from the offense; |
| started at 3:30 pm back in the 1920s and | | | | the leadoff hitter and centerfielder, Earle Combs, |
| generallyended somewhere around 6:00 pm. The | | | | had an on-basepercentage of .414, hit .356 and |
| '27 Yanks usuallydelivered a crippling offensive | | | | had 62 walks and 231 hits. |
| blow to their opponents in thelate innings, thus the | | | | Tony Lazzeri played second base and hit 18 |
| phrase "5-o'clock lightning." Of course,they had no | | | | homers that year,finishing third in the American |
| lights for playing at night, all games were | | | | League home run race. Ruth and |
| daygames. Major League Baseball was settling into | | | | Gehrig, of course, were I-2. Bob Meusel played |
| its widely heldsuperstitions and routine, | | | | the outfield (leftor right) and batted .337 with 103 |
| repetitiveness and all of the mythicaland | | | | runs batted in. He also piledup 24 stolen bases. |
| obsession-based ceremonial acts that still exist to | | | | Lazzeri had 22 swipes. Other notableoffensive |
| this day. | | | | minded "Murderers¡¯ Row" members |
| The 3:30 start time was one of those mystified | | | | were Johnny |
| traditions thatplayers did not like to break from. | | | | Grabowski, Joe Dugan, Pat Collins and Mark |
| Many considered it bad luck ifa game was to start | | | | Koenig. As a team,the ¡¯27 |
| at any other time, or to start early or late | | | | Yankees¡¯ batting average was a |
| ifscheduled for 3:30 pm. | | | | staggering .307. Theyout-scored their opponents |
| "Murderers¡¯ Row" was actually a | | | | by 376 runs and broke a lot ofdefensive-minded |
| nickname for the New York | | | | hearts by scoring 975 runs that year. |
| Yankees first used in 1919 before Babe Ruth was | | | | "Murderers¡¯ Row" also boasted some |
| imported fromthe Boston Red Sox. A sports | | | | of the best pitching in the |
| reporter had used it as he wasdescribing the | | | | Major Leagues in 1927; Dutch Ruether, Waite |
| spring training projected line-up. It was | | | | Hoyt, Herb |
| actuallyhype more than anything else, although the | | | | Pennock and Wilcy Moore, an early relief |
| 1919 line-up wasvery good, even without Ruth. | | | | prot¨¦g¨¦. Hoyt, |
| The Babe arrived and the termwas used loosely | | | | Shockerand Moore were the top three pitchers in |
| here and there, but never really took root untilit | | | | the league, based onwins and earned run average |
| was widely used in the 1927 season. Babe Ruth | | | | (ERA). These three amassed acombined total in |
| hit his highmark of 60 homeruns in | | | | wins of 59. Defensively, the very same |
| ¡¯27 and the New York Yankees won | | | | playersthat drew massive crowds with their |
| 110games, losing only 44 times. They also swept | | | | legendary "5-o¡¯clocklightning" were |
| the World Seriesagainst the Pittsburgh Pirates and | | | | making a statement with their gloves as well. |
| then repeated the feat againin 1928. Babe Ruth hit | | | | Fielding the ball was not as big of an |
| 161 homers from the 1926 seasonthrough the | | | | attention-getter as theirexplosive offense, but |
| 1928 season. The Babe also hit for a high | | | | they did it well enough to hold theiropponents to |
| averageduring this period, with a three-year | | | | 599 total runs scored. |
| batting average of .350. | | | | These trends were not just evident in the 1927 |
| During this stretch, he collected 452 RBIs as well. | | | | Yankees, but allthrough the middle of the decade. |
| His singleseason home run mark of 60 would | | | | The Yankees¡¯ successcontinued, and |
| stand for 34 years. | | | | the term "Murderers¡¯ Row" stuck. It |
| Lou Gehrig, believe it or not, was voted the | | | | was carriedall the way to the 1936-39 Yankees, |
| American League | | | | who won 4 World Series ina row. Professional |
| Most Valuable Player (MVP) in 1927. He hit .373 | | | | Baseball officially "crowned" the 1927 |
| that year, betterthan Ruths¡¯ .356. He | | | | Yankees as the best overall team of all-time in |
| also added 47 homeruns and 175 RBIs. | | | | 1969, during the |
| Thecombination of Ruth and Gehrig struck fear | | | | Centennial celebration of Major League Baseball. |
| into all of the Major | | | | |