Quote:
Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth
I thought there was pretty good evidence Cobb and Speaker bet at one point.
|
Cobb hated Dutch Leonard, said he was one of the only guys he spiked intentionally, and essentially ended Leonard's career in his managing years. Speaker, an old friend then passed on signing Leonard.
Leonard went to Ban Johnson in 1926 and told him that he, Cobb and Joe Wood had conspired to bet on a game in 1919, and that Speaker had agreed to lose it. The Tigers won. Leonard produced 2 very vague letters from Cobb and Speaker that reference a bet, though what it is on is never fully stated. Johnson summoned Leonard to come answer questions about the allegation, Leonard refused to do so. Kennesaw Mountain Landis then publicly cleared Cobb and Speaker in early 1927, as the only source was a man who was angry at both of them, produced no real evidence, and refused to answer questions.
I believe the SABR bio of Dutch Leonard has a pretty good summation of the affair, from memory.
If they were guilty, they should be treated the same as Jackson and Rose when it comes to honors. I've never seen any real evidence they were guilty, much less a preponderance