Black Sox Scandal (1919 World Series vs. Reds)

Lore & Background

The 1919 White Sox had the best record in the American League and were led by stars such as Shoeless Joe Jackson and Eddie Cicotte. Tension ran high between players and owner Charles Comiskey due to his penny-pinching ways. Eight players were later banned from organized baseball in August 1921 for fixing the series or having knowledge of the fix. On May 12, 2025, commissioner Rob Manfred lifted all permanent bans, making the nine banned players eligible for the Hall of Fame by as early as 2027.

In Their Own Story

The floodlights at Comiskey Park hummed and buzzed, casting long amber shadows across the dirt. Joe Jackson stood at the plate, the bat cold in his hands, and could not bring himself to look up at the stands. He knew. God help him, he knew what the men in the cheap suits had whispered in the back room of that hotel on the South Side. The crowd was a wall of faces, thousands of them, and every single one of them was going to find out. He swung. The crack of the bat was ordinary, the sound of wood meeting leather, and the ball sailed into the dark beyond the fence. Somewhere in the stands, a man in a pinstripe suit closed his notebook and wrote a single line. The series was over. The city would never forgive them. Not in a hundred years.

Reader's Guide

The White Sox won the American League pennant with an 88–52 record. Key players included left fielder Shoeless Joe Jackson (.351 average), second baseman Eddie Collins (.319), and pitcher Eddie Cicotte (29–7). The Reds won the National League pennant at 96–44, led by center fielder Edd Roush (.321) and pitchers Hod Eller (20–9), Dutch Ruether (19–6), and Slim Sallee (21–7). The series was a best-of-nine format.

Did You Know?

• The 1919 World Series was a best-of-nine series, along with 1903, 1920, and 1921.
• Eight White Sox players were banned from organized baseball in August 1921 despite being acquitted of criminal charges.
• On May 12, 2025, commissioner Rob Manfred lifted all permanent bans for the Black Sox players.
• Dickey Kerr, a White Sox player not involved in the scandal, was later suspended for holding out for more pay but was reinstated.