Ruth memorabilia nets more than $4M at auction

Two of the most prized items of Babe Ruth memorabilia both owned by actor Charlie Sheen sold for more than $2 million each at auction.

Ruth’s 1927 World Series ring had a winning bid of $2,093,927 at the first Lelands.com Invitational Auction. The 1919 contract of Ruth’s sale from the Red Sox to the Yankees went for $2,303,320. Both started with bids of $100,000.

Leland’s said the winning bidders had not come forward as of Saturday. Earlier in the week, Sheen revealed himself as previous owner.

“These record-breaking prices show once again that Babe Ruth dominates the baseball auction world the same way he did the game,” Lelands. com founder and chairman Josh Evans said.

The five-page contract is the Yankees’ copy that Barry Halper once purchased from former owner Jacob Ruppert’s estate. That Ruppert copy was sold to Sheen in 2005 and hasn’t changed hands until now.

There were three copies of the Ruth contract. The Red Sox copy was sold for $996,000 to a Yankees fan during an auction at Sotheby’s in 2005. The American League copy has never surfaced.

The contract is considered the most important document in sports history. Not only did it start the Yankees on a path of winning 27 World Series titles including four with Ruth but it doomed generations of Red Sox players and fans under “the curse of the Bambino.” The curse wasn’t lifted until 2004, when Boston won its first World Series in 86 years.

Ruth’s ring is the first of four titles he won with the Yankees. That season, Ruth had one of the greatest years in baseball history, a .356 average, 60 home runs and 156 RBIs. He went 6-for-15 in the World Series sweep against the Pittsburgh Pirates, with two home runs and seven RBI.

NBA

PACERS HIRE NEW GM » Indiana Pacers president of basketball operations Kevin Pritchard has hired Chad Buchanan as the team’s new general manager.

The 44-year-old Buchanan replaces Pritchard, who moved up when Larry Bird left in May. Pritchard will still be in charge of the final decisions.

Bird will work with the team as a consultant.

Indiana also promoted Peter Dinwiddie to senior president of basketball operations. Dinwiddie spent the past five years as vice president of basketball operations. He also was the Pacers’ director of basketball administration for four years.

The front office moves come less than 24 hours after Pritchard traded fourtime All-Star Paul George to Oklahoma City. On Saturday, George thanked Pacers fans for their support on Instagram.