In 1895 in Baltimore, Md., George Ruth Jr. was born.

Twenty-three years earlier, Martin Leo Boutilier was born a couple of miles from Glace Bay in the small coal mining town of Lingan.

If their lives never intersected in 1902, then George may never have become the Babe and the popularity of baseball may never have achieved the success it has.

The young Ruth was the first of eight children born to George Ruth Sr. and Kate Schamberger Ruth. George Sr. ran a saloon for many years, surviving the economic troubles of 1893, which forced he and his wife to work even harder, putting in work weeks of 100 hours or more. Little time was left over for the young boy, especially when more children came along.

George Jr. began to hang around Baltimore harbour with older rowdy boys, and often engaged in mischief, window breaking, tobacco chewing and minor thievery. Many times he skipped school, pocketing money from the saloon's cash drawer to buy ice cream for friends. All the while his mother was having more children and also developing health problems.

In 1902, unable to handle their oldest son, Ruth's folks and a justice of the peace filed a form legally labelling seven-year-old George Ruth Jr. "incorrigible and vicious … beyond the control" of his parents. Committed to the St. Mary's Industrial School for Boys and legally removed from his parents' care, young George became a ward of the Xaverian Brothers who operated the school.

Located outside downtown Baltimore, St. Mary's consisted of five buildings, two ballfields, and housed upwards to 800 males (up to age 21); some orphans, some delinquents, and some boarded by their parents. The Brothers were strict and fair and believed all boys in their charge could benefit from discipline, activity, education and training available through the school.

The Brother with the greatest influence on young Ruth's life was Brother Matthias. Matthias was prefect of discipline and assistant director of athletics. He was a 6'6", 250 pound pear-shaped man whose imposing presence alone was enough to put to an end any schoolyard ruckuses.

Over the years, he was a teacher, mentor, coach and friend to the young Ruth.

In his 1947 autobiography Ruth said, "It was at St. Mary's that I met and learned to love the greatest man I've ever known. His name was Brother Matthias. He was the father I needed. He taught me to read and write - and he taught me the difference between right and wrong."

Mathias's name was not always Mathias though. Martin Leo Boutilier lived his early years in Lingan but moved to the Boston States with his parents at a young age. Either by calling or by family decision, Martin entered the Xaverian Brothers and took the name Mathias.

Under Brother Mathias' direction, Ruth was playing with the 12-year-olds by the time he was eight or nine, with the 16-year-olds when he was 12 and making the varsity team at 16, playing with men as old as 20. Sports were a major part of life at the school and baseball was the most popular, at which Ruth excelled.

Ruth credits Mathias for teaching him how to hit, throw and field the ball. Ruth's distinct pigeontoed style of running is credited to Mathias who felt it gave him an advantage in pushing off while running.

Brother Matthias was such a good hitter he would wear a glove on his left hand, toss the ball out of it, then with the bat in his right hand hit fly balls to Ruth and the other boys in the outfield.

Ruth first began pitching when Brother Mathias replaced Congo Kirby with Ruth in an intramural game at St. Mary's.

In 1914, baseball scout Jack Dunn visited St Mary's and enquired about Ruth's amazing ability to both hit and pitch. Mathias assured Dunn Ruth could do anything and within 30 minutes of tossing a ball around Dunn signed Ruth for Baltimore's minor league team, the Orioles.

Babe Ruth eventually became one of the greatest figures in all sports history. Would it have happened without the influence of Cape Breton-born Martin Boutilier, perhaps not.

Paul MacDougall is an educator and writer. He lives in Sydney. His column will appear monthly in the Cape Breton Post.