The 1919 Black Sox Scandal
In 1919, eight of the Chicago White Sox allegedly threw the World Series. Charles Comiskey was the ruthless owner of the White Sox and was the main motive of the sox to throw the series. Chick Gandil was the first player to get involved and then he spread it to the other players on the team. The act by these players would be called the Black Sox Scandal. The Scandal nearly ruined America’s pastime. The baseball commissioner, Judge Landis, banned all eight of the players for life. Based on how Joe Jackson played in the world series and how he was proven innocent in a court of law, he should be reinstated into baseball and be put in the hall of fame.
The owner of the Chicago White Sox was Charles Comiskey. Charles Comiskey was known for treating his players badly. For example, Charles Comiskey benched their pitching ace, Eddie Cicotte, because he was one win away from 30 win season and Comskey didn’t want to give him his bonus. (Linder 1) In 1919, there was no free agency in baseball, so once you were on a team you were stuck there until you were traded or you quit.
The White Sox were getting fed up with how Charles Comiskey was treating them. The White Sox were the best team in baseball, yet they were the lowest paid team also. (Linder 1) Joe Jackson, the best player on the team, was making $6,000 a year. (1) So if this team had a weakness it would be their desire for more money. Sport Sullivan, a gambler, proposed a fix to Chick Gandil in which the White Sox would lose the World Series and the would pay them to do so. (1) Obviously this idea sounded very appealing to Chick Gandil. So Chick Gandil agreed to do it if he would be paid $80,000.
Next Chick Gandil went to his teammates one by one about the proposal. First he went to Eddie Cicotte, who at first rejected the idea but later agreed to it if he were paid $10,000 before the series started. (Asinof 1) Gandil then went after infielders such as “Swede” Risberg and Fred McMullin. (Linder 1) Gandil then went after another pitcher in “Lefty” Williams. (2) Chick Gandil then asked Joe Jackson, Buck Weaver, and Oscar Felsch to meet with the other five the next night, they then agreed. (2) Oscar Felsch and Buck Weaver agreed to the proposal and became apart of the fix but Joe Jackson would not have any part of it even after he was offered $10,000. (Facts 1)
Chick Gandil reported to ...
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...e story. They had all tried to get him to join the fix but he would have nothing of it. When the trial was over all sox were left standing innocent. (Black 1) But the only true innocent man was Joe Jackson. The other seven were all guilty but the jury must have thought there wasn’t enough evidence or they were baseball fans. Even though they were found innocent, it did nothing for their case in baseball because they were still banned from baseball by Judge Landis, the baseball commissioner. (Lowitt 2) Judge Landis made his case by saying that because Joe Jackson knew about the fix and did not report it to any one, he was just as guilty as the rest of them. (2)
Judge Landis said, “no player who sits in on a conference with a bunch of gamblers in which ways and means of throwing a game are discussed and does not promptly tell his club about it, will ever play professional baseball." (Say) But if you were in Joe’s position, would you turn in your friends and teammates? Most people probably wouldn’t. Joe Jackson played his heart out in the 1919 World Series and was even found innocent in a court of law, therefore should be reinstated into baseball and placed in the hall of fame.
The New York Yankees of 1927 were a high-powered machine lead by some of the greats of all time in baseball. This baseball team was composed of seven Hall of Famers, six players including: Earle Combs, George Herman (Babe Ruth), Lou Gehrig, Herb Pennock, Tony, Lazzeri, and Waite Hoyt, and their Manager, Miller Higgins. (New York Yankees Hall of Fame Register, 70) The team had a no-mercy philosophy and had a sense of confidence exceptionally high noted by Babe Ruth: "It was murder, we never even worried five or six runs behind. Wham! Wham! Wham! And wham! No matter who was pitching." The 1920's were an "economic boom for Americans. Now people had more time on their hands with the inventions such as the car and other household products. Those who chose not to be swept up in the Jazz revolution chose to lose themselves in sporting events during the '20s. (Marshall, 1) The newfound confidence propelled the 1927 Yankees to embody the spirit of the 1920's.
Professional athletes serve as role models for younger players. However, some of them are terrible examples to follow based on the way conduct themselves and constantly lie. Sports writer from The New York Times, Michael Schmidt reports, “The 19-page indictment charged Clemens, 48, with three counts of making false statements, two counts of perjury and one count of obstruction of Congress during his testimony in a nationally televised hearing in February 2008 before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform” (Schmidt). Roger Clemens was charged with six total felonies. This might be the most severe attacks of someone's integrity. Five of his six charges were directly related to lying under oath of congress. This is not the type of person that the Hall of Fame should want representing them. More importantly, it is even worse when a player testifies in front of judges and says he never taken steroids. Ever. When looking back at symply baseball statistics, Rafael Palmeiro can be found in many record books for hitting more than 500 home runs and 3,000 hits. However, six months after he swore he never took any type of substance, he was found guilty and suspended (Harris). Rafael Palmeiro is one of the greatest hitters to every play the game. There is no denying his impressive stats. These stellar numbers are later tainter after it is discovered he has
... Series and banned from baseball forever. Rays father felt his son had the potential to also be in the major leagues, but it was too late as he passed away before he could even play a game of catch with his son. Ray is confused and lost internally because of the loss of his father on such bad terms; this becomes a bigger tragedy than he ever thought. It may have even been a tragedy as big as the death of Joe Jackson who died guilty of throwing the World Series. He was never eased of his pain until after his death which was too late. Tragedies are not uncommon phenomena in life, Ray Kinsella and Shoeless Joe Jackson have the misfortune of living a struggle fulfilled life that only consists of tragic events around every corner of their lives.
However, if the current rules remain in place and baseball continues without a salary cap, the only hope a small market team may have is to fend for themselves on the big market with financially superior teams. This becomes an exceedingly harder task when one team can afford the salary of two top players while those contracts are equal to the entire payroll of another team’s entire roster. Therefore, the question remains should baseball implement a salary cap, and if they do, how would it come into play. When asking the question regarding the salary cap, four supporting ideas arise for either the implementation of a salary cap or keeping it nonexistent.
The players involved were first baseman Chick Gandil, Eddie Cicotte, Lefty Williams, “Shoeless Joe Jackson,” Fred McMullen, Swede Risberg, Happy Felsch, and Buck Weaver. Bankston, Carl. A.
Throughout the history of America’s pastime, baseball has continually battled scandals and controversies. From the 1919 “Black Sox” scandal to the current steroid debate, baseball has lived in a century of turmoil. While many of these scandals affected multiple players and brought shame to teams, none have affected a single player more than the 1980’s Pete Rose betting scandal. Aside from the public humiliation he brought his family and the Cincinnati Reds, nothing has done more to hurt Pete Rose than his lifetime ban from baseball making him ineligible for hall of fame. While many are for and against putting Pete Rose in the hall of fame, the four ethical theories, Kantianism, Utilitarianism, Egoism, and Ethical Realism, each have their own unique answer to the question. Through Kantianism Pete Rose should be inducted into the hall of fame, while Egoism, Utilitarianism and Ethical Realism all support the lifetime ban.
For a long time, it was assumed that blacks were not allowed to play in the Major Leagues simply because they had not for so long. When Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis, the commissioner of baseball at the time, declared that there was no rule preventing integration of the Major Leagues, the idea of an African-American joining the league was realized for the first time by a lot of people. In 1943, Branch Rickey, general manager of the Brooklyn Dodgers at the time, had an idea though to be outrageous by many during that period. He considered signing some black players to make up for the wartime shortage of talent. He narrowed down the list of prospects, searching for the best player to integrate baseball. The likely choices for talent would have been Satchel Paige or Josh Gibson. Rickey, however, wanted not only a star but a person who could deal with the harassment from the public, some teammates, and the overall opposition. Knowing of Jackie's talent and his hate for segregation, Rickey set up an interview hoping he could convince Robinson to sign a contract. When Rickey told Robinson why he had been brought to see him, Jackie's reaction was a combination of several emotions. "I was thrilled, scared, and excited.
The World Series of 1919 was found out to be thrown by the Chicago White Sox, creating many problems within the American League. This World Series was different than many others. The 1919 World Series was played in a best-of-nine series, rather than being played in best-of-seven like all other World Series games before it. The other team involved, the Cincinnati Reds, had no idea of the scandal. The Baseball Hall of Fame states in their article “Guide to the Black Sox Scandal (American League),” Gambling was not new to baseball. There is evidence that White Sox players, in 1917, paid pitchers from the Detroit club, who beat Boston during the pennant stretch run $200 each.” This shows that the White Sox not only cheated in the 1919 World Series, but also in the 1917 season. There were 8 players involved in gambling with the 1919 World Series, including many of the league’s best players. The eight players involved included Eddie Cicotte, Oscar “Happy” Felsch, Arnold “Chick” Gandil, “Shoeless” Joe Jackson, Fred McMullin, Charles “Swede” Risberg, George “Buck” Weaver, and Claude “Lefty” Williams. These 8 players, threw the game for a cash reward from 5 separate gamblers who were involved in the scandal. Abe Attell, Bill Burns, Arnold Rothstein, Billy Maharg, and Joseph “Sport” Sullivan, were all indicted along with the players for gambling with the 1919 World Series, and was considered as a “crime against baseball
As a 20 year old youth in 1883, Billy played baseball in the lots of his neighborhood in Marshalltown, Iowa. One day the captain for the Chicago White Sox, A.C. Anson, was in the lots watching all the teenagers, young adults, and Billy Sunday playing baseball. Anson was so impressed with what he had seen in Billy’s baseball performance that Billy was signed unto the White Sox soon after.
the worst. Comiskey, the owner, promised the White Sox that if they did win the 1917 world
Jack Roosevelt Robinson was born on January 31, 1919, in Cairo, Georgia to a family of sharecroppers. He was the youngest child, he had 4 siblings. In 1920 his father left the family, leaving his mother to take care of all 5 children. His mother, Mallie Robinson, moved the family to a predominantly white neighborhood in a suburban part of Pasadena, California. This was Jackie’s first experience being a pioneer in integration.
Chicago Cubs baseball goes all the way back to April 25th, 1876 when they played the first game in the history of the Chicago National League Ball Club. However; at the time, they were not known as the “Cubs.” In general, they were known as the “White Stockings.” But a select few referred to them as the “Colts,” or “Orphans.” The team played in only five different locations in the 1800s because of the lack of places to play baseball at the time. As years went by, the league became popular, becoming one of the sports first dynasties. Chicago won six of the first eleven inaugural National League Championships (Cubs Timeline). In 1902, Frank Selee began managing Chicago to debut his managerial career. Just like managers, the name changed as well. A local newspaper penned the nickname “Cubs” for the first time. The name grew on people over time and was officially adopted in 1907. The year after that, victory arose in the city of Chicago. The season was filled with some of the greatest old-time baseball players. The batting line-up consisted of many good hitters and not jus...
Jackie Robinson was born on January 31,1919 in Cairo,Georgia as the youngest out of five children. He attended John Muir High School. Jackie continued his education at the University Of California where he became the university’s first student to win four varsity letters in all different sports. In 1941,he was forced to leave UCLA because of financial hardship.
Jack Roosevelt Robinson was born in Cairo, Georgia in the year 1919. His middle name is Roosevelt after President Teddy Roosevelt who spoke out against racism until his pleas were stifled by white supremacy groups. Jackie was born into a family of sharecroppers. His parents named Mallie and Jerry were in a patchy marriage. They had four kids before the marriage finally ended. From then on, Mallie raised all of the children on her own. They happened to be one of the only African American families in their area and were discriminated against tremendously. A year later Jackie Robinson and his family moved to Pasadena, California with a group of emigrants. There they lived in a small, three room apartment with the whole group of emigr...
Lesko, J. (2005). League History. All-American Girls Professional Baseball League Players Association. Retrieved for this paper Mar 20, 2014 from, http://www.aagpbl.org/index.cfm/pages/league/12/league-history