Curse of the Bambino Red Sox were there. Yankee fans also taunted the Red Sox with signs saying "1918!", "CURSE OF THE BAMBINO", pictures of Babe Ruth, and wearing "1918!" T-shirts each time they were at the Stadium. Before Ruth left Boston, the Red Sox had won five of the first fifteen World Series, with Ruth pitching for the and championship teams (he was with the Sox for the 1915 World Series but the manager used him only once, as a pinch-hitter, and he did not pitch). The Yankees had not played in any World Series up to that time. In the 84 years
Babe Ruth second consecutive pennant and World Series, as the Yankees finished in third place, sixteen games back. At the end of the season, Shawkey was fired and replaced with Cubs manager Joe McCarthy, though Ruth again unsuccessfully sought the job. McCarthy was a disciplinarian, but chose not to interfere with Ruth, and the slugger for his part did not seek conflict with the manager. The team improved in 1931, but was no match for the Athletics, who won 107 games, games in front of the Yankees. Ruth, for his part, hit .373, with 46 home runs and 163 RBIs. He had