‘Jeopardy!’ Contestant Stirs Social Media for Believing Babe Ruth Broke Color Barriers in MLB

Babe Ruth is considered one of the best players in baseball history. However, the one thing he never did was break the color barrier in the sport, because that wasn’t possible. On a Jeopardy! episode that aired Wednesday night, host Alex Trebek asked the contestants: “One of the topics covered in a Major League Baseball course at Arizona State is this player who broke the color barrier in 1947.” Contestant, Xiaoke Ying answered “Babe Ruth,” and social media went wild.

The answer is Jackie Robinson, and interesting enough that episode aired on Jackie Robinson Day. Ruth played well before Robinson, but Ruth was white and Robinson was the first black player to play in Major League baseball. Robinson has made such an impact on baseball, his No. 42 jersey is retired throughout the league. There has also been a number of books, documentaries, and movies about him throughout the years.

Robinson was a member of the Brooklyn Dodgers from 1947-1956. During his time with the Dodgers, Robinson was a six-time All-Star, he was named Rookie of the Year in 1947, he was named NL MVP in 1949, he helped the Dodgers win the World Series in 1955. Social media did not hold back on Ying for getting the answer wrong.

The Answer

Here’s a look at Ying answering the question. It was eventually answered right, but this Dodgers Twitter account is still wondering how and why she would say, Babe Ruth. Odds are, she only knows a few baseball players and Ruth was the first player that came to her. 

One Reason

This Twitter user explains why Ying answered Babe Ruth. The candy bar Baby Ruth is named after the baseball Hall of Famer, and with the candy having chocolate, she may have thought about the candy bar breaking the color barrier.

Debate

This fan believes Ruth being black is up for debate. Odds are Ruth has no family members who are black, but there’s no denying the impact he made on the game. Ruth left baseball as the home run king, but that was broken by Hank Aaron in 1974. 

USC v. UCLA

It’s the battle of Los Angeles schools, as this Twitter user believes UCLA is better than USC. Many people might debate that, but both schools demand a lot of their students when it comes to academics. Also, it’s very unlikely both schools have classes about baseball history. 

Always the Answer

This Twitter user looked back when Rosie Perez answered Babe Ruth when asked a basketball question in the film White Men Can’t Jump. Babe Ruth played multiple positions on the baseball field, and he’s an iconic figure. But he’s not the answer to every sports question. 

Lost It

When this person heard the answer, he couldn’t contain himself. For people who love sports, listening to the answer has to be amusing. However, Ying probably doesn’t follow baseball closely, so Babe Ruth might be one of the few players she knows. 

Winner

Ying is not too upset about missing the question because she ended up winning when it was all said and done. Social media had some fun with Ying about Babe Ruth, but she ended up getting the last laugh, and she will look to defend her title on Thursday.