The subject I chose for our assignment was sports. Inside that topic I decided i would enjoy writing about the Black Socks Scandal of 1919. I decided writing about the Black Socks scandal would be the most enjoyable topic for me. The scandal would also give me adequate material to write about because of the many connections to sports of all times. One of the more prevalent connections I enjoy about this topic is the cheating. This event was an eye opener to the baseball and the American people. Until this time there was no example of cheating on this scale and it really changed the game I personally enjoy watching.
As I started reading more on the Black Socks scandal I found out many interesting facts I didn't know before. Firstly I found out there was no leader of the scandal however there were key people involved. Those men Billy Maharg and William Thomas Burns together had the money and the connections to the players to set the scandal in motion. In total the gamblers put half a million dollars on the opposing team the Cincinnati Reds. The gamblers paid off 8 players including one of best in history "Shoeless" Joe Jackson.
Jackson has a very controversial role in this scandal. He hit a tremendous .375 average for the entire series while hitting the only homerun of the series. He had no errors in the field and even warned the skipper about the fix before it happened. He did admit however he was offered 20,000 dollars for his part in the series. Jackson along with the other seven players involved in the scandal were banned from playing in major league baseball forever. Even today Joe Jackson is still ineligible for hall of fame induction.
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