Shoeless Joe Jackson

[George]

There is absolutely no question that Shoeless Joe accepted $6,000 in cash, through his teammate Lefty Williams, and that he knew all about the plan to throw the 1919 World Series. There is also no question that Lefty Williams and Ed Cicotte, two of the Sox' leading pitchers, did actually throw the games in which they pitched. The fact that the Shoeless One did hit .375 is of minor importance, in my opinion. His known actions were inexcusable, and he richly deserved to be banned from baseball for life.

[esd10]

well first off jackson was not educated and probably didnt understand what he was doing all he knew he was getting paid some extra cash. second if arod,clemens ect get into the hof then jackson,weaver and rose should be in there. steroids is cheating to no mater how you try to twist it "saying everyone was doing it" thats a load of crap not all the great players like griffey jr didnt use steroids and he had a great career even with all his injurys. Jackson was one of the greatest players of the dead ball era and he needs to be in the hof for all the great things he has done.

[rhettyeakley]

Originally Posted by esd10

well first off jackson was not educated and probably didnt understand what he was doing all he knew he was getting paid some extra cash.

Sorry, I don't buy this idea that Jackson was so ignorant he didn't understand what he was doing was wrong. From all accounts Joe Jackson was not well educated BUT he was not mentally challenged or anything. Betting on baseball, throwing games, etc. are the "cardinal sin" of baseball--there were signs at every ballpark in america stating it was fobidden at the time to bet on baseball--Jackson knew what he was doing when he accepted the money.

[esd10]

well what im trying to say he might not understand the penaltys and the after effects of this scandal when he did it.

[Ladder7]

Why collect?.. Great ballplayer and a good man, just got caught. Doesn't deserve the Hall of Fame Hall of Fame though... Sorry to say, neither does the Ginger Kid.


Joe's testimony in Sept 1920, to the Asst DA;

...Q Did anybody pay you any money to help throw that series in favor of Cincinnati?

A They did.

Q How much did they pay?

A They promised me $20,000 and paid me five.

[bbcard1]

Shoeless Joe is a romantic character...his omission from the Hall of Fame, much like Pete's, has done more to make him famous than his inclusion would have. Had everyone just vote in him ago, he would have been spoken of in more or less the same way as Cap Anson or Al Simmons are... which is to say not much. Which is why I would open the doors wide for McGwire, Bonds, Clemens and not worry much about it. But I can certainly respect hard core opinions on the other side of things. Folks in the middle are the problem.

[Republicaninmass]

"I'm no Barry Bonds fan, but in terms of cheating I'd say he couldn't hold a candle to Cobb or some of the great dirty ballplayers of the deadball era, where spiking, punching, rubbing the ball with shoe polish, mud, spit, vaseline, sandpaper, etc., holding on to guy's belts as they tried to steal bases, slugging them in the gut as they ran by, etc... the one-umpire days of baseball were the dirtiest, most dishonest, ugliest baseball, filled with the most cheating ever seen, no question. The simple reason was, there was only one umpire and they could get away with it."


I'd like to see that kind of stuff return to today's game!

[Peter_Spaeth]

Originally Posted by bbcard1

Shoeless Joe is a romantic character...his omission from the Hall of Fame, much like Pete's, has done more to make him famous than his inclusion would have. Had everyone just vote in him ago, he would have been spoken of in more or less the same way as Cap Anson or Al Simmons are... which is to say not much.

There is some truth to this, but then again he not only had one of the great nicknames of all time, he hit .356.

[dstraate]

I hope I'm not out of line or bringing up taboos or anything, but

http://cgi.ebay.com/1930s-ADOLF-HITL...item3f05aeda7a

I was shocked when I saw this on EBay at 500 bucks. For me, the joy of collecting hinges upon identifying with a player. Even with Joe Jackson, I can put aside the unsavory reputation and admire the ballplayer. Heck. I like guys with a bad reputation because there have been times in my life when I've been less than perfect.

Still, there's really no way I can identify with Adolph. I can't imagine anybody could. Unless this is going to become a part of a propaganda exhibit, I don't get it.

[ls7plus]

I think that Joe's iconic status is due not only to his performance throughout his career, but also in part to the fact that maybe we like our heroes tragically flawed--makes them a bit more real, more human, just like the rest of us!