Jackson's
death derailed efforts
to reinstate him
The momentum
behind the effort to get Joe Jackson reinstated into baseball died with
him on December 5, 1951.
Baseball Commissioner
Kennesaw Mountain Landis set the tone for the future of discussions on
Jackson when Jackson and seven other members of the 1919 Chicago White
Sox were banned from the game for life in 1920.
With each time that
the baseball writers or veterans committees announce new inductees into
baseball's Hall of Fame, the debates can stir again. Does Joe Jackson deserve
a place in baseball's Hall of Fame?
The numbers say yes.
His career average of .356 is one of the highest ever -- and the highest
of any player not currently in the Hall of Fame. Bill James rates Jackson
as 6th among left-fielders in his recent addition of the Baseball Abstract.
Jackson played in 1330 games between 1908 and 1920. He hit 54 home runs
and drove in 785 runs.
The Black Sox scandal,
however, remains the tarnish on his shining career.
The most recent efforts
to get Jackson reinstated include a resolution passed by both the S.C.
House and Senate asking for baseball to look into the issue. The state's
senators met with baseball officials and prominent players -- Ted Williams
-- for one, made the case for reinstatement. To this point, however, baseball
has not taken any action on the requests.
Despite his "ban for
life". Jackson received 2 votes in 1936 and 2 votes in 1946 from those
who believed he should be allowed into the Hall of Fame. |
