Imagine your fate and future resting in the hands of one man’s judgment. This was actually reality for Shoeless Joe Jackson. Many argue that he was one of the best ever to play the game of baseball and was the greatest natural hitter of all-time. Yet, surprisingly, you will not find him among the familiar faces at the Hall of Fame. He was permanently banned from baseball, as well as seven others, for allegedly helping to throw the 1919 World Series.
Joe Jackson was born on July 16, 1888 in Pickins County, South Carolina. He was the oldest of eight children and grew up the son of a cotton mill worker. He began working in the mill at age thirteen and never learned how to read or write. He played baseball in his spare time, and his exceptional skills landed him in the minor leagues by the age of eighteen. He first entered professional baseball in 1908 with Greenville in the Carolina Association. It was during this same year that he received the nickname “Shoeless” Joe after he had just bought a new pair of spikes. They wore blisters on his feet and they hurt so badly that he just played in his stocking feet. Although he played only one game without the spikes, he was known as “Shoeless Joe” from then on (McGee 1).
Shoeless Joe made his major league debut later that year, in 1908, with the Philadelphia Athletics. He only played there a short time before being transferred to the Cleveland Indians. Finally, in 1915 he was sold to Charles Comiskey and the Chicago White Sox. It was here that he played his last few years of professional baseball and his life would be forever changed.
From the years 1917 to 1919 the Chicago White Sox were by far the dominant team in baseball. It is speculated that they could have “gone on to become one of the greatest teams in history” (Schwalbe 2). However, despite having the most talented team around, Charles Comiskey paid his players considerably less than any other winning team (Durst 2). Due to the oppression they were under, the player’s morale began to decrease as their need for money increased. They considered going on strike, but were talked out of it by their manager, “Kid” Gleason. They remained desperate until first baseman Chick Gandil met with a notorious gambler named “Sport” Sullivan.
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...t up and protect his own reputation. Comiskey’s lawyer acted as Joe’s lawyer also, although he was really only trying to protect Comiskey.
In modern day, Joe would have had his own lawyer from the beginning and Landis would have been convicted of contempt of court since he went against the court’s ruling and banished the eight players for life. Joe would not have had to prove his innocence. Instead, someone would have had to prove him guilty. Clearly, this could not have been achieved. There is no evidence that he did anything wrong, and his statistics clearly support the opposite. Alongside, his performance in the 1919 World Series, Joe’s career batting average of .356 is the third best of all-time (CMG 1). On top of this, he led the league in triples eight times and held the throwing record for distance. It is a shame he was never inducted into the Hall of Fame because of one man’s judgment to ban him from the game. Part of Joe’s last words were “I’m going to meet the greatest umpire of all – and he knows I’m innocent.” (McCroskey 1). He passed away on December 5, 1951, and will remain, although often disparaged and misunderstood, one of our national pastime’s greatest legends.
In “Jackie’s Debut: A Unique Day,” is written by Mike Royko, and appeared in the Chicago Daily News on Wednesday, October 15, 1972, the day after Jackie passed away. This article is about one of the most famous and cultural African Americans to ever play the game of baseball. In the beginning of the story, there were wise men sitting in the tavern that had something to say about Jackie. They weren’t the kindest words and said that he would ruin the game of baseball. Jackie was going to be at Wrigley Field and the kid had to see him perform. Him and his friend always walked to the baseball games to avoid streetcar fare. On that day, Wrigley Field was packed. He had never seen anything like it, there were about 47,000 people there and at the
He hit 600 home runs (5th most all time), won 10 gold gloves, and made 13 All Star Games. In almost 150 years baseball history, only the great Willie Mays can match Ken Griffey Jr. in these statistical categories. However, despite these extraordinary stats, Ken Griffey Jr. may be the ultimate “What Could Have Been” player. An incredibly promising career was derailed in the latter half by chronic injuries that robbed him of hundreds of games. If not for these injuries, Griffey was well on his way to becoming the Home Run King (Stark, 2010) and possibly the greatest player ever. Despite these setbacks, Griffey is still revered as one of the greatest and most popular MLB players ever. The savior of baseball in Seattle and the lone star to stay above the darkness of the steroid era, Griffey will go down in history as a legendary athlete.
Jack Roosevelt Johnson was born in the very segregated south in Cairo, Georgia around 1919. Jackie grew up loving baseball and knew that is what he wanted to do. About two decades before Jackie was born the MLB was split between white and Negro leagues. Jackie being an African-American, of course played for the Negro Leagues. He strived in this sport. He lead the Negro League with most stolen bases and had a great batting average. Both his statistics and love for the game brought the name Jackie Robinson to the attention of the Brooklyn Dodger's manager Branch Rickey.
Before beginning a dissection of the reasoning behind each theory, let us look into who Pete Rose is and why he received a lifetime ban from baseball. Peter Edward Rose was a Major League Baseball (MLB) player with the Cincinnati Reds from 1963-1978. From here Pete went on to join the Philadelphia Phillies and the Montreal Expos, now the Washington Nationals, before returning to the Reds as a player-manager in 1984 before becoming the full-time manager in 1986. During his time as a player Pete was able to compile numerous records and awards. He was the 1963 National League Rookie of the Year, a two-time Gold Glove winner, a three-time World Series winner, the 1975 World Series Most Valuable Player, and selected to the All-Star team 17 times. On top of the accolades Pete Rose is MLB’s career leader in hits with 4,2...
The 1919 World Series resulted in the most famous scandal in baseball history. Eight players from the Chicago White Sox (later nicknamed the Black Sox) were accused of throwing the series against the Cincinnati Reds. Details of the scandal and the extent to which each man was involved have always been unclear. It was, however, front-page news across the country and, despite being acquitted of criminal charges, the players were banned from professional baseball for life. The eight men included the great “shoeless Joe Jackson,” pitchers Eddie Cicotte and Claude "Lefty" Williams; infielders Buck Weaver, Arnold "Chick" Gandil, Fred McMullin, and Charles "Swede" Risberg; and outfielder Oscar "Happy" Felsch.
Bo knows what it is like to be called one of the greatest athletes of all time. Vincent “Bo” Jackson had to overcome a lot as a child, he was the eighth of ten children that his mom took care of. His family was very poor, and not knowing his father very well did not help the cause. Jackson overcame poverty by working hard, excelling at multiple sports, and staying out of trouble.
Jackie played one season in 1945 for the Negro Baseball League. He traveled all of U.S. with the Kans...
What has changed the way America’s pastime is looked at forever and prompt worldwide discussion? Joe Jackson and his seven teammates changed the face of baseball forever during the intimate scandal of 1919. No other time in baseball history did Americans question the state of the game. Pete Rose had also brought a debate like no other before in baseball. Since his banishment in 1989 the country has been split on the issue. Gambling by these men and others has caused great problems in baseball. The game of baseball has been destroyed by gambling.
After his departure from the Army he joined the Kansas City Monarchs, an all African-American baseball team, of the Negro League. Due to low pay and constant traveling, he decided he did not want to make baseball a career although he was one of the top players. Until 1947 only white players were allowed in Major League Baseball but in 1945 Clyde Sukeforth, a scout for Branch Rickey who was the Brooklyn Dodgers club president, had been looking for an African-American player and was watching Jackie for a while.
Bart Giamatti’s decision to ban Pete Rose from the Baseball Hall of Fame was not a fair decision at all. Pete Rose was placed on Baseball’s ineligible list in 1989 when commissioner of baseball, Bart Giamatti concluded that Rose had bet on baseball games, including games involving his own team, the Cincinnati Reds. In an agreement made with Baseball, Rose accepted his banishment from the sport. Although he never admitted to having gambled on baseball games (Maury). Pete Rose was a phenomenal baseball player and manager. He was accused of gambling. His team while he was managing was supposedly involved. Bart Giamatti’s severe punishment of Pete Rose is a very controversial topic in the world of sports. There are a few rules that must have been followed to be inducted to the Hall of Fame. The one that is keeping Rose away is rule five. Rule five states: Voting shall be based upon the player’s record, playing ability, integrity, sportsmanship, character, and contributions to the team or teams on which the player played (Maury). This rule has been tested and beaten many times. Many players have entered the Baseball Hall of Fame such as the very unlikable Ty Cobb, the drinking Babe Ruth, the umpire abusing John McGraw, the racist Cap Anson, Gaylord Perry a suspected cheater, and the gambling Leo Durocher. Those are just a few of the baseball players who somehow made into the Hall of Fame and got passed rule five (Ritter). Pete Rose’s problem was not even as severe as all of these other men.
Jackie Robinson was the first black baseball player to play on the professional level, he was fearless, courageous, willful and strong. He was an advocate for civil rights, as well as a great baseball player. He had to try to keep quiet, and keep to himself while playing, but became a stronger and more extreme advocate over time. A leader on and off the fields dealing with much more than just baseball, he also had to deal with the criticism and racial tensions of a prominently white game. Branch Rickey, the owner of the Brooklyn Dodgers, was a showman who knew how to make money and fame in baseball “he had made a fortune for the cardinals as well as himself, and black talent could argument his bottom line by transforming his struggling dodgers into a power house” (Zeiler, 17). He wanted to make his team great by any means possible. He put his eyes on Jackie Robinson. Jackie Robinson changed the game and the world, and will always be a huge figure in baseball and civil rights.
It was not normal for a dark skinned man to play a major league sport. When he started he had to put of with racism and discrimination. But the comments didn’t stop him from becoming the amazing ball player he had become. Jack beat many records and he had an amazing batting average, .349 and a .985 fielding percentage. That amazing first year of playing baseball he had the opportunity to play for the Brooklyn Dodgers. He being the amazing ball player he is, hit 12 home runs and it led them to win the world series. He went to the world series 6 times, which is very impressive. Later on that year he was voted Rookie of the year and he stood out to many people and many people started looking up to him. In 1956 Jackie was traded to the New York Giants and they never let him play so Jackie decided to retire. He retired on January 5,
“Jackie Robinson and the Intergration of Major League Baseball.” History Today. N.p.,n.d. Web 24 Mar. 2014
... 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.
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.