Former MLB legends ‘Shoeless’ Joe Jackson and Pete Rose shockingly were reinstated by league commissioner Rob Manfred on Tuesday.
Jackson and Rose were two of 17 deceased individuals reinstated by MLB, as Manfred noted MLB’s punishment of banned players ends upon their death.
The move allows for Jackson and Rose (the all-time hits leader) to both be elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame. The two were previously viewed as stains on the game, based on their gambling participation during their playing careers.
Jackson was banned from baseball in 1921, along with seven other Chicago White Sox players, for fixing the 1919 World Series. He ranks fourth in MLB history in batting average (.356).
Here’s everything to know about Jackson, who might be headed to the Hall of Fame over 100 years after his playing career ended:
Who was ‘Shoeless’ Joe Jackson?
Jackson was an MLB outfielder from 1908-20, but was most known for his time with the White Sox. He won the 1917 World Series with Chicago but was also a part of one of MLB’s most well-known controversies.
Jackson played 12 MLB seasons, primarily in the outfield. He was one of the best contact hitters ever, with a career line of .356/.423/.517. His best seasons came with Cleveland from 1910-15, and he also played for the Philadelphia Athletics (1908-09) and the White Sox (1915-20).
Jackson is also a notable character in the baseball movie ‘Field of Dreams,’ and is depicted by Ray Liotta.
Why was ‘Shoeless’ Joe Jackson banned?
Jackson, along with seven of his teammates, were banned from MLB after the 1920 season for attempting to fix the 1919 World Series. The players were accused of accepting $5,000 each to purposefully lose the series.
The White Sox players were actually acquitted by a Chicago jury but were banned from MLB anyway by the league’s first commissioner, Kenesaw Mountain Landis. Jackson had 12 hits in the series, a record that wasn’t broken until 1964. He also wasn’t charged with an error.
‘Shoeless’ Joe Jackson stats
Here are Jackson’s career stats in 12 MLB seasons:
- Career: 62.2 WAR, 1,772 hits with 54 home runs, 873 runs, 792 RBIs and 202 stolen bases. .356 batting average with .423 on-base percentage and .517 slugging percentage.
Who were the 17 reinstated individuals?
➤ Pete Rose: All-time hits leader was permanently banned in 1989.
➤ Black Sox: Eight members of the Chicago White Sox were permanently suspended by commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis in 1921 for conspiring with gamblers to throw the 1919 World Series to the Cincinnati Reds. Those players were pitchers Eddie Cicotte and Lefty Williams, outfielder Happy Felsch, first baseman Chick Gandil, shortstop Swede Risberg, third baseman Buck Weaver, utility infielder Fred McMullin, and ‘Shoeless’ Joe Jackson, one of the greatest hitters in baseball history.
➤ Joe Gedeon: A member of the St. Louis Browns at the time of the Black Sox scandal, Gedeon was present during meetings between gamblers and the aforementioned White Sox players.
➤ Gene Paulette: Once the Black Sox scandal ruling was made by Landis, Paulette was retroactively suspended permanently from the game for allegedly receiving gifts from gamblers to throw games while playing for the Philadelphia Phillies.
➤ Benny Kauff: Banned by Landis, despite being acquitted by a jury, for allegedly stealing a car. It seems Landis, a former judge, had made up his mind — despite the jury’s decision — that Kauff was guilty.
➤ Lee Magee: Magee and the notorious Hal Chase — who was a fine baseball player in his own right, but also had a reputation for allegedly conspiring with gamblers — were accused of throwing a game while Magee’s Chicago Cubs played Chase’s Philadelphia Phillies. It should be noted that Chase was not among the 17 individuals reinstated by Manfred.
➤ Phil Douglas: Landis permanently suspended Douglas for writing a letter offering to desert his New York Giants — due to quarrels with feisty manager John McGraw — and hurt his team’s pennant-winning chances in 1922.
➤ Jimmy O’Connell: While playing for the Giants in 1924, O’Connell offered an opposing player $500 to throw games in order to help his Giants win the pennant.
➤ Cozy Dolan: Dolan was a coach on O’Connell’s Giants and also was suspended as part of O’Connell’s attempt to bribe a Phillies player to throw games.
➤ William Cox: Cox’s tenure as owner of the Phillies was brief. After buying the team in March 1943, Cox was indefinitely suspended by Landis in November 1943 for placing bets on his own team.