1917 American League Pennant

Lore & Background

The 1917 pennant was the White Sox's third pennant and second World Series championship. The team was led by stars Eddie Cicotte and "Shoeless" Joe Jackson. This was the last White Sox World Series victory before the 1919 Black Sox Scandal, in which eight players were banned for life for conspiring to fix the World Series.

In Their Own Story

September, 1917. The September sun hangs low over Comiskey Park, gilding the brick walls and turning the diamond to gold. A White Sox pitcher winds up in the stretch, the leather of his glove catching the last warm light. The crowd in the stands—factory workers, longshoremen, mothers with their sons in the front row—holds its breath. The ball leaves the hand, a white blur against the darkening sky, and the crack of the bat from the other side rings out like a gunshot over the lake. A runner rounds the bases. The South Side erupts. Somewhere in the clubhouse, a player slaps a teammate on the back and says nothing, because the nothing says everything. The pennant is theirs. They earned it. And two years from now, no one will be able to say that about the next one.

Reader's Guide

The 1917 White Sox won the American League pennant and then beat the New York Giants in the World Series. The team's next World Series appearance was in 1919, which was marred by the Black Sox Scandal.

Did You Know?

• The White Sox won the 1917 World Series against the New York Giants in six games.
• The 1917 championship was the White Sox's second World Series title, following their 1906 win over the Cubs.
• The 1919 World Series was the next White Sox appearance, but it was tainted by the Black Sox Scandal.