Hall to display earliest-known Ruth jersey

Visitors to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown, N.Y., will be able to view the earliest-known uniform top worn by Babe Ruth, beginning Friday.

The circa-1920 New York Yankees road jersey was purchased via auction this past May and loaned to the Hall of Fame by the buyer, who wishes to remain anonymous.

The jersey is expected to remain on display in Babe Ruth's locker in the Babe Ruth Gallery through Hall of Fame Weekend 2013, which will be July 26-29 of that year. It will not be on display from July 24 to Aug. 9 of this year.

The road gray jersey features the words "New York," across the chest in blue lettering, and Ruth's name and initials are written inside the collar in faded pink script.

"We are thrilled to have this valuable piece of baseball history on display in Cooperstown, so fans everywhere can enjoy another relic from The Bambino's career," Hall of Fame President Jeff Idelson said. "The jersey's new owner wants to share this piece of history with baseball fans and historians alike, and we're equally excited to provide a home to display this vintage item for fans around the globe."

Ruth, who was sold to the Yankees by the Red Sox before the 1920 season, was inducted into the Hall as part of its inaugural 1936 class. Previously, the oldest Ruth jersey in the museum's collection was from a barnstorming trip Ruth took in 1927 and 1928.