The Good Ol’ Days Are Now

I?ve come to the conclusion that people with some sort of fetish for the ?good ol? days? or the ?Golden Age? of major league baseball are the very people who need to learn their history. The most severe punishment available in the history of the American and National Leagues has been lifetime banishment from MLB. In practical terms, this means the banned individual cannot play, manage, coach, or work in any other capacity for a MLB team, its affiliated teams, and/or media outlets. The ban also extends to representing players and possessing any share in ownership. Since 1991, the ban extends to HOF eligibility, preventing the HOF from listing banned players on the ballot. Banishment has traditionally been limited to individuals who ?tarnished the integrity of the game,? usually by gambling and/or fixing games. In other words, baseball reserves its harshest punishment for individuals who undermine public confidence by throwing games. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Major_League_Baseball_figures_that_have_been_banned_for_life We will assume the wikipedia entry is complete for the moment. That is, we will assume that it lists all individuals banned for life, including those who were later reinstated. The wikipedia list seems to copy the supposed complete list from the 2nd edition of The Historical Baseball Abstract by Bill James. If we assume the ?Golden Age? of baseball occurred sometime before WWII, we have a real problem. The vast majority of players, umpires, and management figures banned to date were banned prior to 1945. Of these, the majority of lifetime bans were for gambling and/or fixing games (i.e. actions that effected public confidence in the outcomes of games). Gambling was a major problem in pro baseball before 1930 or so. Baseball is no longer attractive from a gambling standpoint for three reasons. First, MLB has a tradition of punishing gambling/fixing more harshly than any other offense, which has served as a deterrent. Second, the game itself is not conducive to setting lines/odds. Third, other pro and college sports have come into being as more viable alternatives. Gambling was pervasive in 19th American society, to an extent that is hard to believe even today. At the turn of the 20th century, major boxing matches and professional baseball were the only sports with enough national following (and suckers) to justify major fixing conspiracies. As the reader well knows, this led to gamblers and players for the Chicago White Sox fixing the 1919 World Series between the Sox and Cincinnati Reds. Public discussion and official suspicion surrounding some of the more blatantly fixed 1919 WS games refused to die. As a result, the owners appointed Federal judge Kennesaw Mountain Landis as the first MLB Commissioner in 1920. Landis interpreted this as a real mandate to clean up baseball, not a public relations move. Consequently, Landis personally excommunicated the vast majority of individuals ever banned for life. Notable Cases Prior to 1920: Prior to 1920, the MLB owners? committee was the adjudicative body that handed out lifetime bans. Richard Higham (NL Umpire): To date, the only umpire banned for life. Higham was accused of fixing a game in 1882. The investigation provided ample evidence of associating with known gamblers. Joseph Creamer (Team Physician, NY Giants): Banned for bribing an umpire $2,500 to fix the 1908 playoff game between the Cubs and Giants. The umpire rolled on Creamer. Horace Folger (Owner, Philadelphia Phillies): Banned for accusing various NL umpires of favoring the NY Giants and fixing games. (There was considerable evidence that these were legitimate accusations, see above.) Notable Cases from 1920 to 1944: The most famous case is of course, the ?Eight Men Out? or the eight White Sox players banned in 1920. These were Eddie Cicotte, Happy Felsch, Chick Gandil, Joe Jackson, Fred McMullen, Swede Risberg, Buck Weaver, and Lefty Williams. Interestingly enough, Jackson and Weaver were banned solely for failing to report the conspiracy. However, there is considerable evidence that Jackson did inform team personnel, and it is generally agreed that neither Jackson nor Weaver tanked plays in the WS or ?underachieved.? The real cancer of the Roaring Twenties was Hal Chase of the NY Giants. Chase was banned for life in 1921 for associating with known criminals and gamblers, betting on baseball, and fixing games. As early as 1910, Chase had been accused of fixing games, and he was the unofficially ?blackballed? from managing for years as his playing career wound down. In 1918, Christy Matthewson suspended Chase on his own authority as manager of the Reds. Matthewson believed Chase was fixing Cincinnati games. John McGraw perusaded Mathhewson to trade Chase to the Giants, who were then known as a ?dirty? team in every sense of the word. In 1919, NL President John Heydler investigated Chase and discovered payments from gamblers in 1918. Chase was effectively banned in 1919, but Landis made this a lifetime ban in 1921. William B. Cox became the second owner of the Philadelphia Phillies owner banned under suspicious circumstances, as well as only the second owner to ever be banned for life. Cox was banned for betting on the Phillies to win games in the 1943 season. The 1943 Phillies finished 41 games back at 64-90! All Cases from 1944 to Present: Landis died in 1944. Despite his ironhanded techniques and lack of compassion, there is no doubt that Landis either eliminated organized gambling from MLB, or drove it so far underground that it was no longer a public relations issue. Charges other than gambling account for the majority of the few individuals banned since WWII. Ferguson Jenkins (P, Texas Rangers): Commissioner Kuhn banned Jenkins for life in 1980 for possession of cocaine. An independent arbitrator reinstated Jenkins in 1981. Mickey Mantle and Wille Mays: Kuhn banned Mantle and Mays for signing autographs and greeting casino patrons at Atlantic City in 1983. Ueberroth reinstated the all-time greats in 1985 on the grounds that their conduct was not a clear violation of MLB rules. Pete Rose (Manager, Cincinnati Reds): Commissioner Giamatti banned Rose for life in 1989, after banning him in 1988 as NL President. The official charges against Rose were limited to associating with known gamblers and betting on games. George Steinbrenner (Owner, NY Yankees): Commissioner Vincent banned Steinbrenner in 1990 for associating with a known gambler, Howard Spira. This was a result of a spiteful vendetta against Dave Winfield. (Steinbrenner was attempting to drum up testimony against Winfield; Spira had once worked for Winfield?s charitable foundation.) Selig reinstated Steinbrenner in 1993. Steve Howe (P, NY Yankees, LA Dodgers, etc.): After multiple suspensions related to drug abuse (notably cocaine and alchohol), Commissioner Vincent banned Howe in 1992. An abritrator reinstated Howe, who retired in 1996 after spending more time in rehab than on the roster in his last four seasons. Marge Schott (Owner, Cincinnati Reds): Selig banned Schott from 1996-1998 for making racist statements concerning blacks and jews, and for simultaneously making statements expressing admiration of Hilter and the Nazi Party. Conclusion: What is worse, taking steroids or throwing games? What is worse, trying to help your team win, or associating with organized crime figures? What is worse, taking drugs, or making extremist racist statements when you own a team employing black men? Draw your own conclusions. As far as I am concerned, the good ol? days are right now.