04/19/24
October 27, 2005
Still a hero in hometown: Was Jackson guilty? Greenville says it ain't so.
Nice article, but I couldn't read it all without subscribing. Ooops, sorry, didn't realize that.
posted by justgary at 12:19 PM on October 27, 2005
This is to terrapin. H- 12, HR 1, RBI 6, 2b 3, R-5, and BA-.375. It's obvious he threw the series.
posted by needle park at 01:33 PM on October 27, 2005
Stats be damned; Jackson was part of a conspiracy to throw the Series. Bottom line. He accepted money and didn't reveal the conpiracy to anybody. Do that in relation to any illegal endeavor today and see what happens to you. Chances are, you'd end up incarcerated.
posted by The_Black_Hand at 02:49 PM on October 27, 2005
Needle park, maybe his role was to play well to make sure people wouldn't know he was in on the fix? We don't know. What we do know (from the linked article) is that he admitted accepting $5,000 from gamblers who wanted the Sox to lose, but not bad enough as to change the long-shot odds they were getting betting on the underdog Reds. He took the money and kept his mouth shut. I'm sure he was a helluva person, swell dad, and wonderful husband. We do know he was an amazing talent on the ball field. But he accepted the money and told no one that the series was fixed. What role he played in the fix we will probably never know. There is nothing that can be done to give Joe a second chance now. Maybe the punishment didn't fit the crime. I'd have to say I think it was too harsh a penalty. All that can be done now is to recognize his contribution to the game, both good and bad, but in Cooperstown.
posted by scully at 03:59 PM on October 27, 2005
ACTUALLY JOE DID TELL THE OWNER OF COMINSKY PARK, BUT NOBODY WOULD LISTEN. THE FIRST TIME HE WAS BRIBED, HE DECLINED THE OFFER. HE WENT ON TO PLAY THE WORLD SERIES AND TRIED HIS BEST, UNFORTUNATELY A WIN IS ALL ABOUT TEAM WORK WHICH IT DIDN'T HAPPENED. THE REDS WON AND AFTERWARDS HE GOT A PIECE OF THE MONEY. MY POINT HERE IS THAT THERES A BIGGER CHANCE HE WAS INNOCENT AND WELL SINCE BACK THEN JOE WAS SORT OF ILLITERATE HE COULDN'T DO ANYTHING TO STOP IT. SO PLEASE PEOPLE GO DO MORE RESEARCH BEFORE BASHING SOMEONE.
posted by e&j2127 at 04:26 PM on October 30, 2005
The nice thing is illiteracy is no bar to posting.
posted by yerfatma at 06:32 PM on October 30, 2005
Nice article, but I couldn't read it all without subscribing. From what I know about the situation, Joe accepted $5,000 in the scandal, but points to his play as an indication that he didn't cheat. While I don't agree with the lifetime ban, I do think Joe was as involved with the scandal as an of the other 7 players. He accepted money and he kept his mouth shut. That makes him an accomplice. He may have been "cleared" in the trial, but there is plenty of speculation that the trial of the 8 players wasn't exactly on the up-and-up. I also understand why baseball took the harsh stand they did at the time with gambling so prevalent. I just don't agree with the lifetime ban, nor do I agree that now that the lifetime has ended that "Shoeless" Joe Jackson shouldn't be allowed to be in the Hall of Fame. Apparently, Joe has an official web site too, in addition to his own virtual hall of fame.