ury looked into allegations that the 1919 World Series had been thrown. Cicotte was called into court and was the first to admit to the scandal, followed by Shoeless Joe. Illinois had no law about fixing games, and the eight players were acquitted of the charges brought against them for defrauding the public and injuring the business of Charles Comiskey and the American League (Schwalbe 9). The owners of baseball needed desperately to shake this horrible scandal that crushed the integrity of the game. They appointed Kennesaw Mountain Landis as commissioner, and the day after the eight were acquitted, he barred them from baseball for life. While there is no doubt that a scandal occurred, it is often questioned who was directly involved and whether or not Landis’s actions were justifiable. The most questionable player often mentioned is Shoeless Joe. There is no solid evidence to back up the charge that he was involved in the fix (Nola 1). While under oath, Sleepy Bill Burns, the fixer who put the players and gamblers in touch with each other, testified that he never talked to Joe about the fix. Instead, he took the word of Lefty Williams. While also under oath, Williams admitted he never received permission from Joe to use his name with the fixers. There is actually some evidence that has lead people to believe that Joe tried to tell one or more White Sox officials about the fix, before the start of the 1919 World Series. Joe even allegedly told Comiskey and asked to be benched for the Series to avoid any suspicion that he was involved, but his request was refused. Joe ended up being one of the stars of the Series. He hit the only homerun, led all players by batting .375, fielded flawlessly, and his twelve hits set a World Series record (Nola 1). On the evening after the last game, Lefty Williams came to his hotel room and offered him an envelope of cash. Joe refused the money and left the room, but Williams left i...
