Black Sox Scandal Misconception #5: The momentary scandal
The myth is that the Black Sox World Series scandal was a one-off, an isolated event.
In fact, it was merely the best known of numerous betting scandals – many proven, a few merely suspected – from that era. Those scandals reflected the linkage between the gambling and sports industries at the time and were a necessary component to the World Series fix.
There have been suspicions, explored most deeply in Sean Devenney’s book, “The Original Curse,” that the 1918 World Series between the Cubs and Red Sox may also have been fixed. In fact, some have suggested that the 1919 White Sox got the idea of a fix from rumors about the 1918 Series.
There has been additional speculation, much of it based on statements by White Sox players, that players continued to fix games during the 1920 season, manipulating game outcomes in order to keep the pennant race close.
The SABR report notes that veteran first baseman Hal Chase “was caught red-handed bribing teammates and opponents alike in 1918, but was whitewashed by the National League.”
It quotes baseball historians Harold and Dorothy Seymour as asserting that the scandal was not an aberration brought about by a handful of villainous players. It was a culmination of corruption and events at corruption that reached back nearly 20 years.”