Baseball: Babe Ruth's bat found under bed

The baseball bat Babe Ruth used to hit the first home run in Yankee Stadium has been found after languishing under a bed for two decades.

The owner of the bat plans to put it up for auction, Professional Sports Authenticators, a sports memorabilia company, said yesterday.

Ruth hit the homer in the third innings on April 18, 1923, against the Boston Red Sox. He autographed and inscribed the bat to Victor Orsatti, a winner of a California youth home-run-hitting contest. Orsatti, who became a Hollywood talent agent, died in 1984.

The bat was passed from Orsatti to an unnamed woman who kept it under her bed for 20 years. It was recently acquired from the woman's family by Sports Cards Plus of Laguna Niguel, California.