A “Scandalous” anniversary

Given the number of volumes that have been written following the Moneyball formula over the past few years, I’m almost shocked by the paucity of new material regarding the dark cloud that has hovered over our national pastime for 100 years.

I’m referring to the 1919 Black Sox Scandal.

Image result for eight men out book To be sure, there have been a good number of books on the topic. The first one I ever read was Eliot Asinof’s Eight Men Out: The Black Sox and the 1919 World Series, originally published in 1963; years later, it was turned into one of my favorite baseball movies. And the first book review I ever published was on Shoeless Joe and Ragtime Baseball by the late Harvey Frommer back in 1992. Since they we’ve had several fine works that look at the notorious incident from numerous points of view, including biographies on the White Sox players, the impact of the cheating on jurisprudence and pop culture, even a book for kids. Here are just a few examples:

The Society for American baseball Research (SABR) will be hosting a three-day symposium on the Black Sox later this month. From the announcement:

This once-in-a-century event will be highlighted by a SABR research symposium with panels and presentations from 9:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m. on Saturday, September 28, 2019, at the Chicago History Museum. The museum is home to an extensive collection of Black Sox artifacts and documents, and we’ll gather in the beautiful Morse Genius Chicago Room event space to discuss the continued relevance of the 1919 World Series and its aftermath.

Our special All-Inclusive Package ($45 for SABR members, $60 for non-members) includes admission to the Black Sox Scandal symposium at the Chicago History Museum; a ticket to the Chicago White Sox game on Friday, September 27; and a guided walking tour of downtown Chicago baseball history sites.

Registration for the symposium only is $20 for SABR members, $25 for non-members. Extra tickets to the White Sox game are $20 each and the walking tour (scheduled for 10:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m. on either Friday, September 27 or Sunday, September 29) is $10 each. Please note: The walking tours are limited to the first 50 people who sign up.

Click here for more information,

It should be noted that until recently, gambling on baseball by players was the only transgression that would have resulted in a lifetime ban from the game.