The top three RBI men on the 1919 Chicago White Sox were suspected or proved fixers.
The winning Cincinnati Reds were led in runs batted in by Pat Duncan, who'd driven in seventeen in only 34 regular season contests in '19, and Edd Roush. Roush had topped the National League with a .321 batting average that year, and driven in 71 runs. Roush had seven runs batted in during the 1919 Fall Classic. But Duncan topped 'em all with eight.
How about the Chicago White Sox? Their top RBI man was none other than Shoeless Joe Jackson. Jackson had 96 RBIs in the regular season, good enough for third in the Junior Circuit. However, he hadn't exactly been known for collecting RBIs when the World Series rolled around. Joe had just two RBIs in the 1917 Fall Classic, which went six games.
Jackson's teammate Chick Gandil had 60 RBIs in the regular season in 1919, which was fairly good as he generally batted in the sixth position. Happy Felsch, the centre fielder, had 86 RBIs in the regular season and tied Joe Jackson for tops on Chicago in home runs with seven.
So, Gandil and Felsch's involvement conjures up no debate. Gandil is believe to be the main man in the fix, and Felsch was heavily involved. Shoeless Joe Jackson's role in the scandal is always hotly contested. According to his grand jury testimony, Joe did indeed accept $5,000 to participate in the fixing of the World Series that year, but swore under oath that he'd tried his best to win.
But did Joe try his best when it mattered?
Jackson reached on an error in the top of the second in the first contest of the 1919 World Series. Actually, the shortstop of Cincinnati, Larry Koft, made a bad throw to first as Joe hit a grounder to him. The miscue resulted in Jackson to second. Joe had done well. He'd led of the inning and gotten into scoring position. Thanks to poor fielding.
But in any event, Happy Felsch hit a sac bunt to get Jackson to third. Then Chick Gandil hit a sac fly of his own to cash in Jackon. The tally tied the game, 1-1, but it was all the home Cincinnati team after that. Final score, 9-1.
The Reds took game 2, 4-2. No one collected an RBI for the visitors. Both White Sox runs scored via errors. Jackson did get three hits, including a double, but was stranded on third twice and second once. Felsch and Gandil had their chances to drive him home. Felsch twice bunted Jackson to third. But with Buck Weaver on third and Jackson on second in the top of the forth in a scoreless game, all Gandil could do was ground to first. Weaver was thrown out trying to score.
Now, in game three in Chicago, the White Sox won 3-0. Shoeless Joe led off the last of the second with a single, but Happy Felsch seemed to make it easy for the Reds. He hit a grounder to first and Jake Daubert fielded. The throw to second was poor, and Jackson made it all the way to third instead of being forced. Felsch pulled up to second on the miscue. On cue, Chick Gandil singled for RBIs two and three. The home team had all the runs they'd need. Jackson got another hit later, but failed to collect an RBI. The only other run driven in was by catcher Ray Schalk, who knocked home Swede Risberg in the bottom of the fourth.
Cincinnati then went into god-mode with their pitching. They beat Chicago 2-0 in game three (Despite hits from Jackson, Felsch and Gandil) via a three-hitter. Then, Hod Eller beat Lefty Williams 5-0 in the fourth contest.
Supposedly, the fixers were now upset that they'd been shortchanged by the gamblers and trying their best in game five. If they were, they sure made things tough on pitcher Dickie Kerr, the winner of the third contest. Since the series was actually best-of-nine rather than seven, Chicago was still alive. But on life support.
And things just seemed to get worse instead of better. Kerr was not good this time around. The Reds got two hits off him in the top of the first, got two more on via a walk an error the next inning, then broke through in the third.
You'd think Kerr would be replaced, but what transpired wasn't all his own undoing. Jake Daubert had singled in the third with one away in the top of the third. Kerr fanned the next batter, only to have Daubert swipe second. Kerr then hit Edd Roush, and Pat Duncan collected two RBIs of his own with a double to right-centre.
Greasy Neal tripled to start the top of the fourth. One out later, pitcher Dutch Reuther doubled to left (Jackson's neck of the woods). Then, Swede Risberg made his second error of the game (He'd total four by the time the Fall Classic was over, leaving no doubt of his intentions). This led to a fourth run, and a huge lead. Try 4-0.
The White Sox pried a run loose in the top of the fifth, but Dickie Kerr made a bad baserunning mistake that ran his team out of the inning. Still 4-1 down, things were looking real grim for the visiting Chicago White Sox. Shoeless Joe was 0-2.
But Buck Weaver got things off on the right foot in the top of the sixth. He doubled to left. Jackson came through, but only with a single for the Sox's second tally. Joe then scored on an double by Felsch to make it 4-3.
Now Chick Gandil and Swede Risberg seemed to want it to get no closer as they made outs one and two of the inning. However, Ray Schalk drove home Felsch with a single to left, 4-4!
Still tied 4-4 in the top of the eight, Joe Jackson and Chick Gandil were able to coax walks from Cincinnati. But Chicago failed to score either as Swede Risberg lined into an inning-ending double play. Hmmm...Swede isn't trying, eh?
Anyways, Chicago won it in extras, but the ugly way. Weaver doubled. Jackson bunted, but more for a hit as he beat it out. Weaver was 90 feet away from breaking the 4-4 deadlock. Felsch fanned. Ah. Chick Gandil did single, but from the looks of things, the ball wasn't exactly hit very well. And would you believe that Risberg again lined into an inning-ending double play? Jackson nailed at first. Not really a good game for two men who were supposedly trying their best.
And not a good game for the pitcher, either. Although Dickie Kerr went all ten innings for the complete game win, he'd given up four runs, eleven hits and two walks. And he'd hit a batter don't forget.
So, Eddie Cicotte, who was 0-2, was on the hill for Chicago in game seven to try and keep his team's hopes alive. But Eddie was certainly in on the fix, and supposedly, he'd received every last penny he'd ask for. So why would he go out and try?
Well, like Kerr the day before, Cicotte didn't pitch that well. Although Cicotte, too, went all the way (But only nine innings), he allowed seven hits and three walks. It was a very mediocre player, Ivey Wingo, who Eddie couldn't get out if his life depended on it. It made for some very anxious moments (At least, for the White Sox players who still cared).
Shano Collins, not in on the fix, got the ball rolling for Chicago. In their very first time to grab lumber, the White Sox took off. Collins singled. The other Collins, Eddie, bunted him to second. But then Buck Weaver, who failed to collect a single RBI in the 1919 World Series, flied out to second. Shano held. The rally appeared to be dying. Weaver admitted to baseball's first commissioner, Kennesaw Mountain Landis, that he attended two meetings with the players and gamblers prior to the start of the Fall Classic, but did not take a dime. When the smoke cleared, Buck hit .324 for the Fall Classic of 1919, but was suspended for life.
Joe Jackson was also suspended for life. But here, with Shano Collins still at second base, he singled to make it 1-0. Happy Felsch attempted to keep the rally going with the third single of the inning as Jackson was now in scoring position, but Chick Gandil would have none of that. He ended the inning by forcing Felsch at second.
Both Collins' singled to start the third, but then Weaver lined into a double play (Was he borrowing a page from Swede Risberg?) Jackson singled, just like he'd done the last time up. And like last time, it scored Shano Collins from second. 2-0. Felsch forced Jackson. Of the fixers, only Shoeless Joe appears to be trying. I still haven't proved to you Eddie Cicotte is, have I?
Was Cicotte that good in the Fall Classic in the first place? Well, coming into this seventh game, he'd pitched a total of five World Series contests. And while his earned run average was great, 2.52, Eddie had allowed 35 hits in 35 2/3 innings pitched. He'd also lost a game in 1917 and two more in '19 for good measure. So Cicotte was 1-3 lifetime in World Series contests prior to this seventh tilt.
In the fifth inning, it was time for the other Collins to score. Shano Collins was retired to start the frame, but Eddie singled. Buck Weaver reached on an error by the third basemen. Jackson reached, also on an error, but this time it was second basemen Morrie Rath's fault. Felsch came through with a single to score Collins and Weaver (RBIs two and three for Happy). Jackson was now at second. But both runners were stranded as Gandil and Risberg made outs. Chicago wouldn't score again this game.
Cincinnati got two on in the bottom of the inning, but Cicotte stranded them. The next inning, Heinie Groh hit a ground-rule double to left. That's Shoeless Joe's area, remember? One out later, Pat Duncan put a "1" on the Cincinnati side of the scoreboard with a single. There was still plenty of time for a comeback.
Dolf Luque, who relieved Red Fisher (Who'd himself relieved battered starter Slim Sallee in the top of the fifth) in the sixth inning for the Reds, disposed of Weaver, Jackson and Felsch in the seventh, fanning two and getting Shoeless Joe to ground out. Ivey Wingo and Morrie Rath got on for the Reds in the last of that frame, and the tying run was at the dish, the batter being Jake Daubert. However, Jake grounded out to second basemen Eddie Collins.
Swede Risberg reached on a one-out error in the top of the eight, only to be cut down trying for second. Ray Schalk ended the three-batter inning with a grounder to short. Cicotte got the Reds 1-2-3 in the bottom of the inning, but fanned to lead off the ninth. Shano Collins flied out. Eddie Collins grounded out. Dolph Luque had gone four shutout innings, allowed just one hit and fanned five. He hadn't quite emerged as a star yet. Although 10-3 with Cincinnati in 1919 (After being 6-3 the previous season), Dolph had only nine starts to his name. He was basically a relief ace. At least at this point.
Eddie Cicotte was now three outs away from his second career win in the Fall Classic, and Chicago's third win of the 1919 World Series. Quickly, he Larry Koft and Greasy Neal out. But then Ivey Wingo, who'd walked all three trips to the dish in this contest, singled. Sherry Magee batted for Dolph Luque and followed suit. Jimmy Smith ran for Magee. Morrie Rath ended the game by flying out. Chicago had this one, 4-1. It was back to The Windy City for game eight.
But it was Cincinnati that decided it early. They scored four runs in the top of the first to knock Lefty Williams out of the game. Chicago seemed to have something going in the bottom of the frame. Nemo Leibold singled. Eddie Collins, who'd gotten two hits in game seven, delivered the first of his three hits in this contest with a double. But Buck Weaver took a called strike three. Joe Jackson popped it up behind third in foul territory. Leibold should have scored the first Chicago run right there, but for some reason held at third. Felsch fanned to end that.
So by the time Chicago scored via a Jackson solo home run in the bottom of the third, it was 5-0 Cincinnati. The White Sox had a promising bottom of the second, as Risberg walked with one away. Ray Schalk popped up in foul territory, but an error by his counterpart behind the dish (Bill Rariden) gave him life and he singled. But Bill James, the relief pitcher who'd relieved Lefty Williams earlier, batted for himself despite the fact that Chicago was desperate for runs. James popped out and Leibold fanned. So much for another promising inning.
And even there, after Shoeless Joe's long ball, the Reds weren't through. They tacked on a run in the top of the fifth to restore the five-run lead. Then, in the sixth, Edd Roush drove in two more runs, and Pat Duncan added an RBI single. 9-1, just like in game one.
The White Sox continued to hit the ball well, but their offence just kept sputtering. Buck Weaver singled to start the last of the sixth, but all Joe Jackson could do is fly out to deep centre. Felsch and Gandil also were retired on fly balls.
In the last of the eight, with one away, Eddie Collins singled, again. Weaver doubled, but it only got Collins to third. Jackson hit a double, both runners scored. Felsch failed to come through, popping out to first. Gandil hit a triple that Greasy Neal couldn't come up with due to the afternoon sun. Was Gandil trying? In any event, he had his fifth and last RBI of the series. Swede Risberg probably wasn't trying as he hit it to short centre. However, Edd Roush made an error and Gandil scored. No RBI, though. So Chicago scored four runs, their biggest inning of the Fall Classic. Could it be argued it was, "Too little, too late?" Or, Cincinnati made some bad plays? Better fielding by the Reds and the White Sox score two runs, not four.
In any event, Eddie Murphy (Not the actor) pinch hit for pitcher Roy Wilkinson and was hit by a pitch to lead off the bottom of the ninth. It was still 10-5 for the visitors. Leibold appeared to have a hit, but a fine, diving catch in centre by Roush put an end to that (Redeeming himself from the last frame?). Eddie Collins got another hit. First and second. One away. But Weaver could only fly out. Murphy tagged and runners were now on the corners with two away. Collins then scored as Shoeless Joe Jackson batted. But Joe stranded both runners by grounding out, as the series was over.
So, Gandil, who was for sure involved in the fix, is really the only player that drove in important runs for the White Sox in the 1919 World Series. Since he's a proven fixer, the point is moot. Jackson did drive in six runs, but they all came in games seven, eight and nine. Not that he didn't hit the ball well in the games with no RBI. Joe had three hits in game two, and another two in game three. Jackson also got the only extra-base hit for Chicago in the lost game four. Felsch collected his only RBIs in games six and seven, which the White Sox were supposedly trying to their best (Sans Risberg?).
References
Anderson, Dave. Pennant Races: Baseball at Its Best. Toronto: Penguin Random House of Canada, 1995. Print.
Baseball-Reference.com - Major League Statistics and Information. https://www.baseball-reference.com/. 31 Aug. 2020. Web.
Bock, Hal. The Associated Press Pictorial History of Baseball. Emmaus: JG Press, 1990. Print.
Cook, William A. The 1919 World Series: What Really Happened? Kindle ed. Jefferson: McFarland, 2001. Print.
Enders, Eric. 100 Years of the World Series. New York: Sterling Publishing Co, Inc., 2005. Print.
Fountain, Charles. Betrayal: The 1919 World Series and the Birth of Modern Baseball. Toronto: Oxford University Press Canada, 2016. Print.
Frommer, Harvey. Shoeless Joe and Ragtime Baseball. Dallas, TX: Taylor Publishing Company, 1992. Print.
Halfon, Mark S. Tales from the Deadball Era: Ty Cobb, Home Run Baker, Shoeless Joe Jackson, and the Wildest Times in Baseball History. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 2014. Print.
Hornbaker, Tim. Fall from Grace: The Truth and Tragedy of "Shoeless Joe" Jackson. New York, NY: Sports Publishing, 2016. Print.
Kalb, Elliott. Who's Better, Who's Best in Baseball: Mr. Stats Sets the Record Straight on the Top 75 Players of All Time. Toronto: McGraw-Hill Canada, 2005. Print.
Mallon, Douglas. The World Series: A Game-By-Game History. Scotts Valley: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform (Amazon.com), 2018. Print.
Neft, David S., and Richard M. Cohen. The Sports Encyclopedia: Baseball. 12th ed. Richmond: Raincoast Books, 1992. Print.
----. The World Series: Complete Play-by-play of Every Game, 1903-1989. 4th ed. Richmond: Raincoast Books, 1990. Print.
Nemec, David et al. 20th Century Baseball Chronicle: A Year-by-Year History of Major League Baseball. Collector's Edition. Lincolnwood: Publications International, 1993. Print.
----. The Baseball Chronicle: Year-by-Year History of Major League Baseball. Publications International, Ltd., 2008. Print.
Shoeless Joe Jackson Virtual Hall of Fame, www.blackbetsy.com/shoeless.html. 31 Aug. 2020. Web.
Snyder, John S. World Series! Great Moments and Dubious Achievements. Richmond: Raincoast Books, 1995. Print.
No comments:
Post a Comment