“They may have juiced up the balls to help offense, too.”
Actually just prior to Ruth was what was called the “dead ball era.”
From 1910 to 1917, the year Ruth broke out, the big HR winners were Home run Baker and Wally Pipp. Each never had more than 12 in a season. It was a very boring set of years for baseball. They didn’t actually change the ball much until 1920 when the ball saw a big upgrade as manufacturers began using machine winders and a higher grade of imported Australian wool yarn, which made the balls consistently livelier and launched the “Lively Ball Era.” Add that to the new cork center beginning use in 1910 limited and you get a ball that is very lively.
wy69
IIRC, they used to keep balls in play for as long as possible, even if they were mush. They may have tried to retrieve foul balls. Nowadays, the pitcher can dislike a ball. The umps will discard a ball pretty readily. Don’t know if this was happening in Ruth’s day.