[Eugene Church]

I really love this excerpt... you made the Babe and the prince come alive to me... you made me feel I was right there in the sunshine at Yankee Stadium standing on the green grass of the diamond with the immoral Babe.

Tears came into my eyes that day I first read it... And those tears are back again today.

This is classic writing.

A Young Prince Meets a Sultan
April 1926

Despite being denied from playing with the neighbourhood children, William nevertheless was fascinated with the big league version of baseball as well. He would follow both the National and American Leagues with zeal, with such stars as Jimmie ‘The Beast’ Foxx, Lou ‘The Iron Horse’ Gehrig, and Walter ‘Big Train’ Johnson setting off his imagination as well as the imaginations of other baseball mad children. But above all the others, there was one player he idolized: George Herman ‘Babe’ Ruth Jr., the man American journalists would dub ‘The Sultan of Swat’ for his hitting prowess. Years later, the King would recount with pride the experience of witnessing Babe Ruth play ball first at the Polo Grounds, and later, Yankee Stadium:

“Those were definitely heady days, as you had two great teams, the Giants and the Yankees, competing for centre stage at the Polo. But it really was no contest as the Yanks had the Babe and that’s all that mattered. Looking back, I can understand [New York Giants’ manager John] McGraw’s frustration, but Ruth was worth the price of admission alone.

“The first time I heard that sound of the ball making contact with his bat is something I will never forget. His sound was different, completely unique from anyone else’s.”

The occasion of attending his first ballgame at Yankee Stadium was due to another time-honoured ritual often observed by the rambunctious kids – skipping lessons to sneak into the ballpark. While William would quickly pay a stern price for that stunt, there was no denying him. William was hooked. The Queen Mom, understandably protective of her children, eventually grew tolerant of their fondness for baseball, at least when his schooling was over for the summer.

Meeting the Babe

In 1926, Colonel Jacob Ruppert, owner of the New York Yankees, invited William to meet his idol for the first time upon learning of the lad’s lineage and his reverence for the Babe. Walking out onto the green grass of expansive Yankee Stadium in the bright sunshine enthralled William. But it paled in comparison after the Colonel called out to a man leaning on his bat waiting his turn at batting practice.

“Hello Babe, I have someone who would like to meet you.”

Turning around, the man looked down upon his young admirer, who was now standing completely in his shadow.
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”Hey kid, how you doin’?”

The lad, rendered speechless, could all but shake the Babe’s outreached hand.

“What’s the matter son - cat got your tongue?”

The broad smile on Ruth’s face put William at ease and he finally found the words.

“Would you teach me how to hit a baseball like you?”

Ruth laughed. “Sure kid. Here, let me show you how to hold a bat.”

It would be the beginning of a friendship that would last to this day. The Prince would continue to meet his idol on numerous other occasions, learning the finer elements of hitting and how to wait for a pitch. His Highness recalled another experience he had with the Babe later that same summer:

“I was swinging the bat back and forth trying to apply what the Babe was teaching me while he relaxed on the grass.

“Keep your feet square son, and bend those elbows”, he implored. “Keep them close to the body. You gotta watch for those inside pitches.”

Looking out towards the pitcher’s mound, I made the mistake of thinking out loud.

“It must be easy to be a pitcher. All you do is wind up and throw.”

“Easy?” Ruth exclaimed, “That just goes to show how little you know about baseball!”

“Why, have you tried it?” I asked.

The immediate laughs from the other players within earshot made me realize that I had just stuck my other foot in my mouth. Needless to say, that little session quickly became a pitching clinic. As the rest of the team lined up to watch him take to the mound, my awe of the Babe only grew.

“There’s nothing he can’t do!” I said to myself.””

As pleasant as it was for the young royal family in America, home was never far away for the Queen Mother. For the first time in years, the news from Braeland sounded hopeful. Unrest over the oppressive regime was spreading throughout the island. The Resistance was successfully turning the tide, and clamour for a return of the monarchy was becoming more vocal. In anticipation of their eventual return, William would now be groomed in preparation for assuming the Brunswick throne. While his personal contact with the Babe would become less frequent, his education and training would not deter him from following Ruth and his Yankees. In time, Ruth himself would pay William a visit, although under much different circumstances.

Excerpt taken from the forthcoming book At The Wall: How Baseball Saved A Nation, by Paul Shirley, senior sports editor of the Brunswick Courier. Reprinted with permission.