ESPN analyst Chris "Mad Dog" Russo criticized Chicago Cubs outfielder Pete Crow-Armstrong on air after the 24-year-old suggested baseball legend Babe Ruth never existed.
Russo ripped into Crow-Armstrong on ESPN's First Take following comments the player made during a recent appearance on Kristin Cavallari's podcast.
Crow-Armstrong claimed he entertained the conspiracy theory after hearing a rival pitcher with the Mariners discuss it on a Zoom podcast. The outfielder suggested that even if Ruth did exist, pitchers may have been throwing underhand to him.
"This is gonna be crazy. Babe Ruth never existed is one that I like," Crow-Armstrong said on the podcast. "I heard some pitcher with the Mariners... I think he did some podcast on Zoom where he was going down the rabbit hole with somebody about how Babe Ruth never existed."
Crow-Armstrong added: "We always talk about how the game is evolving, people might as well have been like underhanding the ball to that guy. And he's regarded still as one of the best players ever. Might as well dive further into it and be like, well, maybe he just never existed."
Russo's Response on First Take
The remarks drew a passionate response from Russo, who labeled the comments derogatory and admitted the bizarre take drove him nuts.
"Hey Pete, you're talking to me now about Ruth!" Russo said on air. "Nobody hit home runs like Babe. Say what you want about Ohtani, we understand that he's a unicorn."
Russo pointed out that Ruth hit 27 home runs over 500 feet during his career, contrasting it with Barry Bonds, who never hit a single ball that far. Russo added: "Ruth owned baseball, nobody hit home runs like Ruth! He out-homered leagues! To sit there and say they were pitching underhand, well why didn't anybody else hit the home runs hitting underhand?"
The veteran radio host slammed the trend of active players belittling icons from past generations. "Outside of [Lou] Gehrig, nobody hit home runs! It drives me crazy, especially in baseball, it drives me crazy when I hear today's athletes and media guys who are 30 years old, who disparage the old-time guys," Russo said.
Ruth's Pitching Pedigree and Legacy
Russo emphasized that Ruth's pitching achievements made Crow-Armstrong's comments look even worse, noting that Ruth led the Boston Red Sox to World Series titles before becoming a power hitter.
"Are you crazy? He would have been a Hall of Famer as a pitcher, forget as a hitter," Russo concluded. "There's only one Babe Ruth... And when you start to knock Ruth... pay attention, do your homework. That was a disgrace what he said this week."
