We need to stop pretending that Babe Ruth, who dominated the competition of his day by a margin unseen before or since, by any athlete in any sport, wouldn't have been able to play today. In 1920, he single-handedly hit more home runs than 14 of the other 15 *teams* in baseball. He was head and shoulders above everyone else.
Had Ruth been born in 1995 instead of 1895, he'd be using a modern bat, not a 46-ounce tree trunk. He'd be a billion-dollar investment that his bosses would surround with the best training and resources money can buy, like the Dodgers do with Ohtani.
Or if you want to level the playing field in the other direction, send today's pitchers back in time to play under the conditions of the day. Send Jake deGrom back to the days before Tommy John surgery and let me know if he's still playing at age 38. The truth is he never would have even made the big leagues in the first place, because he had his *first* elbow surgery in the minors.
You have two choices: you either give Babe Ruth the benefit of every modern convenience that today's pitchers have, or you send today's pitchers back to an era without air travel, elbow surgery, or a new baseball any time they want one.
Either way, Ruth wins.
A list of stats Cal Raleigh led Aaron Judge in
HRs
RBIs
Being a catcher (very important!!!!!!)
Switch hitting (the platoon advantage actually hurts and is more impressive!!!!)
Anything else?