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Britannica Concise Encyclopedia:

Black Sox scandal


U.S. baseball scandal, centring on the charge that eight members of the Chicago White Sox had been bribed to lose the 1919 World Series to the Cincinnati Reds. Five of those accused admitted to a grand jury that they had thrown the series, but their signed confessions later disappeared. Although all eight players were acquitted in 1921, commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis banned them from playing for life.

For more information on Black Sox scandal, visit Britannica.com.

 
 
US History Encyclopedia: Black Sox Scandal

The Black Sox scandal began with the World Series of October 1919, when eight members of the Chicago White Sox baseball team allegedly conspired to lose to the Cincinnati Reds. The Reds won five games to three at a time when the series could go to nine games. The scandal did not become public until almost a year later, however. In August 1921, a jury found the accused conspirators innocent. Nonetheless, the day after their acquittal the newly appointed commissioner of major league baseball, Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis, banned them from professional baseball for the rest of their lives.

Gambling had been a presence in baseball long before the Black Sox scandal, and the major league team owners had done little to limit its influence. Rumors of a fix circulated before, during, and after the 1919 series, but the White Sox owner, Charles Comiskey, chose not to investigate them. Prompted by concerns of several journalists and baseball executives, a grand jury investigated allegations over a fixed 1920 season game, which eventually led to investigation of the 1919 series and the indictment of the eight players. None of the gamblers, such as the notorious Arnold Rothstein, who organized the fix, were charged with a crime, however, partly because documents were stolen and bribes paid.

Five of the players—infielders Arnold "Chick" Gandil and Charles "Swede" Risberg, outfielder Oscar "Happy" Felsch, and pitchers Ed Cicotte and Claude "Lefty" Williams—were guilty of throwing the five games. Fred McMullin only batted twice in the series, and infielder Buck Weaver's only crime was remaining silent about the fix. The part played by the great hitter "Shoeless Joe" Jackson, who was illiterate, has been debated ever since.

Baseball survived the Black Sox scandal mostly because gambling's influence declined and Babe Ruth, beginning his Yankee career in 1920, transformed the game.

Bibliography

Asinof, Eliot. Eight Men Out: The Black Sox and the 1919 World Series. New York: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, 1963.

Seymour, Harold. Baseball: The Golden Age. New York: Oxford University Press, 1971.

White, G. Edward. Creating the National Pastime: Baseball Transforms Itself, 1903–1953. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1996.

—John Syrett

 
Columbia Encyclopedia: Black Sox scandal,
episode in which eight members of the Chicago White Sox, the American League champions, were banned from baseball in 1921 for having conspired with gamblers to throw the 1919 World Series to the Cincinnati Reds. The best-known of the “Black Sox” was Shoeless Joe Jackson. Because of the scandal, baseball club owners appointed Judge Kenesaw M. Landis as commissioner of baseball to clean up the sport. The immense, rising popularity of Babe Ruth is thought to have counteracted the damage done to professional baseball by the Black Sox.

 
Wikipedia: 1919 World Series
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The 1919 World Series matched the American League champion Chicago White Sox against the National League champion Cincinnati Reds. Although most World Series' were of the best-of-seven format, the 1919 World Series was a best-of-nine-games series (along with 1903, 1920, and 1921. Partly to increase the popularity of the sport and also increase revenue, baseball decided to try the best-of-nine game format.[1]

The events of the series are often associated with the Black Sox Scandal, when several members of the Chicago franchise conspired with gamblers to throw World Series games. The 1919 World Series was the last World Series to take place without a Commissioner of Baseball in place. In 1920, the various franchise owners installed Kenesaw Mountain Landis as the first "Commissioner of Baseball."

Records: Cincinnati Reds (W: 96, L: 44, Pct: .686, GA: 9) - Chicago White Sox (W: 88, L: 52, Pct: .629, GA: 3 ½)

Managers: Pat Moran (Cincinnati), William "Kid" Gleason (Chicago)

Umpires: Cy Rigler (NL), Billy Evans (AL), Ernie Quigley (NL), Dick Nallin (AL)

Summary

NL Cincinnati Reds (5) vs. AL Chicago White Sox (3)

Game Score Date Location Attendance
1 White Sox – 1, Reds – 9 October 1 Redland Field 30,511
2 White Sox – 2, Reds – 4 October 2 Redland Field 29,690
3 Reds – 0, White Sox – 3 October 3 Comiskey Park 29,126
4 Reds – 2, White Sox – 0 October 4 Comiskey Park 34,363
5 Reds – 5, White Sox – 0 October 6 Comiskey Park 34,379
6 White Sox – 5, Reds – 4 (10 innings) October 7 Redland Field 32,006
7 White Sox – 4, Reds – 1 October 8 Redland Field 13,923
8 Reds – 10, White Sox – 5 October 9 Comiskey Park 32,930

Matchups

Game 1

October 1, 1919 at Redland Field in Cincinnati, Ohio

The first game began at 3pm that day at Cincinnati's Redland Field with Cicotte on the mound for Chicago, who failed to score in the top of the first inning, and 30,511 fans in the stands with people outside the park paying at least $50 per ticket. In the bottom of that inning Cicotte (who was paid his $10,000 the night before the series began) hit the lead-off hitter, Morrie Rath in the back with just his second pitch, a prearranged signal to Arnold Rothstein that the game was going to be thrown. Despite this, the game remained close for a while, due in part to some excellent defense from the conspirators, who did not wish to bring suspicion on themselves. In the fourth, however, Cicotte gave up a sequence of hits, including a two-out triple to the opposing pitcher, as the Reds scored five times to break a 1-1 tie. Cicotte was replaced by a relief pitcher but the damage was done, and the Reds finally triumphed 9-1.

By the evening of that day, there were already signs that things were going wrong. Only Cicotte, who had shrewdly demanded his $10,000 in advance, had been paid. Burns and Maharg met with Abe Attell, a former world boxing champion who acted as intermediary for Rothstein, but he did not provide the next installment ($20,000), wanting to place it out on bets for the next game. The next morning Gandil met Attell and again demanded their money. Again, the players went unpaid.

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Chicago (A) 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 6 1
Cincinnati (N) 1 0 0 5 0 0 2 1 x 9 14 1
W: Walter "Dutch" Reuther (1-0)   L: Eddie Cicotte (0-1)

Game 2

October 2, 1919 at Redland Field in Cincinnati, Ohio

Although they had not received their money, the players were still willing to go through with the fix. "Lefty" Williams, the starting pitcher in Game Two, was not going to be as obvious as Cicotte. After a shaky start he pitched well until the fourth inning, when he walked three and gave up as many runs. After that, Williams went back to looking unhittable, giving up only one more run; but a lack of clutch hitting, with Gandil a particular villain, meant that the White Sox lost 4-2. Attell was still in no mood to pay up. Burns managed to get $10,000 and gave it to Gandil, who distributed it among the conspirators. The teams headed to Comiskey Park in Chicago for the third game.

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Chicago (A) 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 2 10 1
Cincinnati (N) 0 0 0 3 0 1 0 0 x 4 4 3
W: Harry "Slim" Sallee (1-0)   L: Lefty Williams (0-1)

Game 3

October 3, 1919 at Comiskey Park in Chicago, Illinois

Dickie Kerr, who was to start Game Three for the Sox, was not in on the fix. The original plan was for the conspirators, who disliked Kerr, to lose this game; but by now dissent among the players meant that the plan was in disarray. Burns still believed, however, and gathered the last of his resources to bet on Cincinnati. It was a decision that would leave him broke, as Chicago scored early - Gandil himself driving in two runs - and Kerr was masterful, holding the Reds to 3 hits in throwing a complete game shutout and a 3-0 victory.

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Cincinnati (N) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 1
Chicago (A) 0 2 0 1 0 0 0 0 x 3 7 0
W: Dickie Kerr (1-0)  L: Ray Fisher (0-1)

Game 4

October 4, 1919 at Comiskey Park in Chicago, Illinois

Cicotte was again Chicago's starter for the fourth game, and he was determined not to look as bad as he had in the first. For the first four innings he and Reds pitcher Jimmy Ring matched zeroes. With one out in the fifth, Cicotte fielded a slow roller, but threw wildly to first for a two-base error. The next man up singled to center and Cicotte first cut off the throw home from Jackson and then fumbled the ball, allowing the run to score. When he gave up a double to the next batter the score was 2-0 - enough of a lead for Ring, who threw a three-hit shutout of his own. The Reds led the Series 3-1.

After the game, "Sport" Sullivan came through with $20,000 for the players, which Gandil split equally between Risberg, Felsch, Jackson, and Williams - who was due to start Game Five the next day.

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Cincinnati (N) 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 2 5 2
Chicago (A) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 2
W: Jimmy Ring (1-0)  L: Eddie Cicotte (0-2)

Game 5

October 6, 1919 at Comiskey Park in Chicago, Illinois

The next game was delayed by rain for a day, and when it got under way both Williams and Reds pitcher Hod Eller were excellent. By the sixth inning, neither had allowed a runner past first base, before Eller hit a blooper that fell between Felsch and Jackson. Felsch's throw was off line, and the opposing pitcher was safe at third. Leadoff hitter Morrie Rath hit a single over the drawn-in infield and Eller scored. Heinie Groh walked before Edd Roush hit a double - the beneficiary of some more doubtful defense from Felsch - to score two more runs, and Roush himself scored shortly later. Eller pitched well enough for the four runs to stand up and the Reds were only one game from winning the Series.

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Cincinnati (N) 0 0 0 0 0 4 0 0 1 5 4 0
Chicago (A) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 3
W: Hod Eller (1-0)  L: Lefty Williams (0-2)

Game 6

October 7, 1919 at Redland Field in Cincinnati, Ohio

Game Six was held back in Cincinnati. Dickie Kerr, starting for the White Sox, was not as dominant as in Game Three. Aided by three errors, the Reds jumped out to a 4-0 lead before Chicago fought back, tying the game at 4-4 in the sixth, which remained the score into extra innings. In the top of the tenth, Gandil drove in Weaver to make it 5-4, and Kerr closed it out to record his - and Chicago's - second win.

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 R H E
Chicago (A) 0 0 0 0 1 3 0 0 0 1 5 10 3
Cincinnati (N) 0 0 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 11 0
W: Dickie Kerr (2-0)   L: Jimmy Ring (1-1)

Game 7

October 8, 1919 at Redland Field in Cincinnati, Ohio

Despite the rumors that were already circulating over Cicotte's prior performances, Chicago manager Kid Gleason showed faith in his ace for Game Seven. This time, the knuckleballer did not let him down. Chicago scored early and, for once, it was Cincinnati that made errors in the field. The Reds threatened only briefly in the sixth before losing 4-1, and suddenly the Series was close again.

This did not go unnoticed by Sullivan and Rothstein, who were suddenly worried. Prior to the start of the Series, the Sox had been strong favorites and few doubted that they could win two games in a row - presuming they were trying to win. Rothstein had been too smart to bet on individual games but had a considerable sum riding on Cincinnati to win the Series. The night before the eighth game, Williams - who was due to pitch - was visited by an associate of Sullivan's who left him in no doubt that if he failed to blow the game in the first inning, he and his wife would be in serious danger.

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Chicago (A) 1 0 1 0 2 0 0 0 0 4 10 1
Cincinnati (N) 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 7 4
W: Eddie Cicotte (1-2)   L: Harry "Slim" Sallee (1-1)

Game 8

October 9, 1919 at Comiskey Park in Chicago, Illinois

Whatever Williams had been told had made its impression. In the first, throwing nothing but mediocre fastballs, he gave up four straight one-out hits to yield 3 runs before Gleason replaced him with relief pitcher Big Bill James, who allowed one of Williams' baserunners to score. James continued to be ineffective and, although the Sox rallied in the eighth, the Reds ran out 10-5 victors — clinching the Series by 5 games to 3. Immediately after the end of the Series, rumors were rife throughout the country that the games had been thrown.

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Cincinnati (N) 4 1 0 0 1 3 0 1 0 10 16 2
Chicago (A) 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 4 0 5 10 1
W: Hod Eller (2-0)  L: Lefty Williams (0-3)
HR: CHI – Joe Jackson (1)

Notable performances

Cincinnati Reds

  • Alfred "Greasy" Neale (of):10-for-28; .357 batting average; 3 runs; 2 doubles; 1 triple; 4 RBI
  • Hod Eller (p):2 games (started); 2 complete games (1 shutout); 2 wins; 18 innings pitched; 13 hits allowed, 4 earned runs; 2 bases-on-balls; 15 strikeouts; 2.00 ERA

Chicago White Sox

  • "Shoeless" Joe Jackson (OF):12-for-32; .375 batting average; 5-for-12 w/ men in scoring position; 5 runs; 3 doubles; 1 home run; 6 RBI
  • Ray Schalk (C):7-for-23; .304 batting average; 2-for-3 w/ men in scoring position; 1 run; 2 RBI
  • Buck Weaver (3B):11-for-34; .324 batting average; 1-for-5 w/ men in scoring position; 4 runs; 4 doubles; 1 triple
  • Dickie Kerr (P):2 games (started); 2 complete games (1 shutout); 2 wins; 19 innings pitched; 14 hits allowed; 3 earned runs; 3 bases-on-balls; 6 strikeouts; 1.42 ERA

Reference(s)

  1. ^ 1919 Chicago White Sox. historicbaseball. Retrieved on 2007-06-10.
  • Chicago Historical Society: Black Sox
  • Famous American Trials: The Black Sox Trial
  • Asinof, Eliot, Eight Men Out. New York: Henry Holt. 1963. ISBN 0-8050-6537-7.
  • Pietrusza, David Rothstein: The Life, Times, and Murder of the Criminal Genius Who Fixed the 1919 World Series, New York: Carroll & Graf, 2003. ISBN 0-7867-1250-3
  • Neft, David S., and Richard M. Cohen. The World Series. 1st ed. New York: St Martins, 1990. (Neft and Cohen 76-81)

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