The Empire of Freeport: Base Ball in Northern Illinois and Iowa in 1865
The Empire Base Ball Club of Freeport, Illinois, began its…
Did Bud Fowler Almost Break the Major-League Color Line In 1888?
Bud Fowler’s election to the National Baseball…
Exit Stage Left: The Sad Farewell of Cap Anson
Adrian “Cap” Anson was one of a handful of…
Boodle and Barnstorming: When Politics and the National Pastime Convened in Dwight, Illinois
Col. Frank Leslie Smith (1867-1950) was a banker,…
The 1906 World Series: The First World Series With Umpire Hand Signals
While the World Series returns to us annually,…
The Chicago Green Sox
In 1912, Chicago was under consideration by two upstart baseball…
For Whom the Ballgame Tolls: Ernest Hemingway Attends a White Sox Game Before Shipping Off to War
Baseball played a big part in Ernest Hemingway’s life.…
The White Stockings’ Fleet-Footed Preacher: Billy Sunday vs. the Alcohol Machine
Mike “King” Kelly, Arlie Latham, Cap Anson,…
Guilty as Charged: Buck Weaver and the 1919 World Series Fix
In mid-March 1921—amid delay in the criminal…
The Endurance of Black Sox Mythology: Narrative Conventions and Poetic Form
Historians and scholars of the Big Fix and the Black Sox…
Which Manager Knew First That the 1919 World Series Was Fixed?
Several players on the 1919 Chicago White Sox agreed…
Major League Baseball in Iowa: Iowa’s History of Hosting Negro League Contests
The Washington Post described the so-called significance…
Chicago, Latina Culture, and Community of Women’s Baseball
While baseball’s origin story began on the East Coast,…
Hack Wilson: A Pugilist
“During his career in Chicago, Hack [Wilson] has indulged…
Stan Hack: Leadoff Batter Extraordinaire
Ross Barnes was the first principal leadoff batter…
Handy Andy Pafko: A Wisconsin-Born Player Succeeds In Chicago And Milwaukee
Andy “Pruschka” Pafko was born to Czech parents in…
A Fox in White Sox
In the modern game, a team’s fortune or failure…
The Path to the Cubs and White Sox from the Negro Leagues: 17 Barrier Breakers
Numerous talents from the Negro Leagues made their…
The Michigan City White Caps
In the early 1950s, minor league baseball was in a decline.…
1967: A Perfect Season for Ken Holtzman: A Weekend Wonder in the Summer of Love
The flip side of Ken Holtzman’s 1968 Topps baseball…
Bill Melton: The South Side’s First Home Run King
“Now it’s even. It’s neck and neck. We’ll start from…
Bill Veeck: The Second Time Around
Bill Veeck had a decades-long baseball career.…
Editor’s Note: The National Pastime 2023
Welcome, my friends, not just to the Windy City, but…