The "Star-Spangled Banner" is a staple before sporting events in the United States, with our national anthem being sung prior to each game. But where did that tradition begin?
It began with America’s national pastime more than a century ago.
On National Anthem Day in the year in which we celebrate the 250th birthday of the United States, it’s a great time to look back at the history of "The Star-Spangled Banner" in baseball, beginning with the seminal moment when it was first sung during a Major League game.
Baseball leads the way
On Sept. 5, 1918, "The Star-Spangled Banner" was about a week shy of its 104th birthday. But this day would be significant, one during which an event would take place that would lead to a quantum leap in the song’s popularity among the general populace.
The anthem was written by Francis Scott Key in the wake of the American victory over Great Britain in the Battle of Fort McHenry in Baltimore on Sept. 13, 1814. The United States’ triumph in the conflict, which was part of the War of 1812, inspired Key’s poem, which was set to music by his brother, John Alfred Key.
During Game 1 of the 1918 World Series between the Cubs and Red Sox in Chicago, a spontaneous and -- unbeknownst to the 19,274 fans in attendance -- a momentous event took place during the seventh-inning stretch.
With Babe Ruth working on a six-hit shutout in a 1-0 Boston victory, a U.S. Navy band began to play "The Star-Spangled Banner" in the middle of the seventh inning, honoring the nation’s soldiers in the midst of World War I. The fans in the stands, as well as the players on the field, stood at attention during the recital.
Not to be outdone, Red Sox owner Harry Frazee brought in a band to perform the anthem before each game when the Series shifted to Fenway Park, sparking a tradition that is going strong more than 100 years later.
Not only did baseball help amplify the popularity of "The Star-Spangled Banner," it did so long before the song was even officially declared to be the country’s national anthem -- that happened on March 3, 1931 -- hence “National Anthem Day” each year on March 3.
From special occasions to every MLB game
After the impromptu performance at the World Series in 1918, "The Star-Spangled Banner" was sung prior to games on Opening Day, Independence Day, during the World Series or on other special occasions.
But by the 1940s, when the U.S. was embroiled in World War II, each MLB stadium had become equipped with a public address system, and the national anthem began to be performed before every Major League game.
Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who was president at that time, notably threw out the ceremonial first pitch in a World Series game three times -- first as governor of New York and candidate for president at Wrigley Field prior to Game 3 of the 1932 World Series (the game in which Ruth famously “called his shot”), Game 3 of the 1933 Fall Classic and Game 2 of the 1936 Series.
As legend has it, FDR threw his head back and laughed as Ruth crossed home plate after his mythical homer in '32.
Great moments in MLB-national anthem history
Many of us think of Whitney Houston’s stirring rendition of "The Star-Spangled Banner" during halftime of Super Bowl XXV in 1991 when we consider the greatest national anthem performances of all time.
But there have been many moving and spectacular performances of the anthem prior to MLB games over the years since it was first sung in the 1918 World Series.
Whether a traditional powerhouse performance of the anthem, a guitar-led version (Carlos Santana -- not the baseball player -- prior to Game 4 of the 2014 World Series), an orchestra under the direction of a world-renowned composer (John Williams before Game 1 of the 2007 World Series) or an incredibly moving recital by more than 35,000 fans as a show of unity in the wake of tragedy (Fenway Park crowd following the Boston Marathon bombing in 2013), the singing of "The Star-Spangled Banner" has provided some memorable moments in the history of the national pastime.