When I started putting together my T206 card collection in the late 1990s, I knew quite a bit about baseball history but not a thorough amount about the dead-ball decades of early last century. Yes, I had read books about Christy Mathewson, grew up in the Detroit area knowing all about Ty Cobb and had heard about the Black Sox scandal (and Joe Jackson) from my Dad starting when I was about 8 years old. However, some of the other great players of the T206 era were just names I had seen in record books or occasionally in stories.
This brings me to Hal Chase. When I first started collecting T206 cards, I knew Chase’s cards fetched a premium over common T206 cards and that Chase was one of the star players of the era. Therefore, I just assumed he was in the Hall of Fame. Indeed, there are lots of Hall of Famers in the T206 set that are not household names even to baseball fans (know of George Davis, anyone? (footnote 3)). However, I was to learn several years later that Hal Chase was not in the Hall of Fame. He was indeed one of the great players of the dead-ball era, but he had committed the one unforgivable sin of baseball players: Gambling on games in which he played.
Modern baseball fans know of the gambling issue in the case of Pete Rose. Pete holds the record for most career hits by a MLB player and would surely have been a unanimous first-ballot selection if it had not been discovered that he gambled on baseball games as both a player and then later as the Manager of the Cincinnati Reds.
Pete Rose may never get into the Hall of Fame. If there was ever an advertisement for how not to behave as a person in the spotlight, Pete Rose would be it. He is despised by many Hall of Fame voters because:
(1) He is blamed for contributing to the heart-attack death of MLB commissioner Bart Giamatti, who shortly before his death banned Rose for life from baseball in 1989 (footnote 1).
(2) He has never shown much remorse for his gambling or Giamatti’s death. Indeed, he even claimed that he was wrongfully punished by Giamatti for gambling from 1989 until 2004 when he finally admitted to gambling on games in his biography (footnote 4).
(3) He shamelessly capitalizes on the awful situation he created to make money in any way he can. He signs memorabilia in Cooperstown outside of the Hall of Fame on the days of ceremonies where he IS NOT inducted into the Hall of Fame. He later inscribed on 30 baseballs that he is sorry that gambled on baseball to coincide with the publishing of his biography where he admits gambling on baseball (footnote 2). He will have a new reality series on television next year about his marriage as a 69-year-old man to a Playboy centerfold . This will be Rose’s third marriage (footnote 10).
Indeed, Pete seems to be his own worst enemy. Commissioner Bud Selig toyed with the idea of reinstating Rose back in 2003-2004, but Pete could not keep from purposefully doing stupid things like releasing his biography where he admitted gambling on the exact date that newly elected Hall of Fame players were announced in 2004, thus stealing headlines on the sports pages. Selig thought again. It’s likely that Pete Rose will never get into the Hall of Fame during his lifetime.
Hal Chase was worse behaved...
Hal Chase was worse behaved...
Hal Chase’s behavior makes Pete Rose look brilliant. Chase was born in California (1883, Birth name: Harold Homer Chase) and played collegiately at Santa Clara University (footnote 5). He was drafted by the New York Highlanders (e.g., Yankees) in 1905 and would play his initial Major League years for the Highlanders/Yankees from 1905 to 1913. Chase was known for his amazing fielding ability and very good, but not outstanding, hitting. He did win the NL Batting Crown with Cincinnati in 1916, and was a fast base runner being one of the better base stealers of his era (footnote 6). However, it was his fielding that made Chase a great player. Both Walter Johnson and Babe Ruth claimed that Chase was the best fielding 1st baseman they had ever seen. He has been named to many lists of the best baseball players even to play the game.
However, that’s where the superlatives about Hal Chase stop.
Chase was also one of the shadiest characters to ever play baseball, even in the shady dead-ball era. “Price Hal”, as he was referred to by many people, was incredibly popular with his teammates, a generally good looking man, and known to be a master poker player and pool shark. He was a king of the evening and night life. Based in a city (e.g., New York) where wild times were plentiful, this enabled Chase to mix with all sorts of people, including gamblers. To add to this universe of temptations, Chase always seemed to have a chip on his shoulder about the pay of Major League players, which was poor by today’s standards. In 1907, Chase held out for higher salary from the Highlanders and also played in the California League despite threats the National Commission (the ruling body of baseball) to keep him from playing in the majors. He was also one of the players to jump to the upstart rival Federal League in 1914 until it folded in 1915 (footnote 5). This was likely due to the chance to get better pay in the Federal League or at least escape his building reputation for lackadaisical play. This perceived inequity about pay made it easy for Chase to probably justify to himself trying to fix games for money.
Caption: Vertical leaps like the one pictured above show Chase's athletic ability at first base. This photo can be found at: http://z.lee28.tripod.com/therest/halchase.html
Given his position at first base and his fielding prowess, Chase was in a special position to be able to affect the outcomes of games. As stated on one web site profiling Chase: “It was especially easy for the talented Chase to help his team lose. A bad throw here, a misplayed grounder there. It was all in a days work (footnote 8)." This observation seems very astute in that Chase also holds the record for most career errors by a first baseman, despite his legendary fielding prowess (footnotes 5,8). Either Chase was charged for errors in getting to hit balls that others could not even try to field or he misplayed them purposefully. While some of the former likely happened, Chase was too talented to lead the Major Leagues in fielding errors at first base in so many seasons given his tremendous fielding skill.
Given his position at first base and his fielding prowess, Chase was in a special position to be able to affect the outcomes of games. As stated on one web site profiling Chase: “It was especially easy for the talented Chase to help his team lose. A bad throw here, a misplayed grounder there. It was all in a days work (footnote 8)." This observation seems very astute in that Chase also holds the record for most career errors by a first baseman, despite his legendary fielding prowess (footnotes 5,8). Either Chase was charged for errors in getting to hit balls that others could not even try to field or he misplayed them purposefully. While some of the former likely happened, Chase was too talented to lead the Major Leagues in fielding errors at first base in so many seasons given his tremendous fielding skill.
Chase was accused of throwing games for money as early as 1908 (footnote 7). In 1910, Highlanders Manager Gene Stallings accused Chase of throwing games. However, Chase was backed by Highlanders' upper management and ownership because of his star status, and Stallings was fired and replaced by Chase himself as field manager (footnote 7). After one season of Chase’s management and a middling finish in the standings, Chase was replaced as manager and returned to being just a player. In 1913, when future Hall of Famer and then Yankees (team name changed in 1913) manager Frank Chance accused Chase of throwing games, Yankees’ upper management listened and Chase was traded to the Chicago White Sox (footnote 7). Chase’s erratic and lackadaisical play for the White Sox was so obvious to fans that “fans and players alike would shout out, "whats the odds" at him before ball games.” (footnote 8). His throwing of games had become that obvious.
By the 1914 season, Chase had jumped to Buffalo of the Federal League to escape Chicago. When the Federal League folded, Chase was signed by the Cincinnati Reds in 1916 and led the National League in batting (footnote 5). However, in 1918, the scrupulously honest Christy Mathewson, who was managing the Reds, suspended Chase for the final two months of the season for throwing games (footnote 7). Mathewson brought charges against Chase to the National League office, but Chase was acquitted due to lack of evidence (footnote 5). Chase was given one last chance by John McGraw and the NY Giants as he was signed for the 1919 season. However, National League President John Heydler told the Giants to fire Chase late in 1919 as substantial evidence surfaced, albeit late, to support Mathewson’s accusations that Chase helped fix games in 1918. At this point, Chase could not work in the National League. Hughie Jennings, then managing the Tigers, told all American League Clubs also not to hire Chase because of Chase’s past, and thus “Prince Hal” was out of the major leagues for good (footnote 5).
Chase spent the next decade bouncing around the unregulated “Bush Leagues” of the Southwestern United States and Mexico. He was accused of throwing more games (footnote 5). After a number of injuries, Chase retired to a life of drifting up and down the West Coast doing odd jobs. He ended up being indigent and was forced to move in with his sister in his later years. He died in a Colusa, California hospital at the age of 64 (footnote 9).
The above paragraphs are just a small outline of Hal Chase’s gambling issues. Chase was also thought to have played some part in the Chicago Black Sox scandal to throw the World Series in 1919. Chase would later admit to knowing about the fixed World Series before it a happened but claimed he was not part of it. When asked why he did not come forward, his answer was simple" “I was no squealer.” (footnote 9). Chase undoubtedly corrupted many of the players around him with his gambling schemes. Many of his documented cases of fixing games involved other players. Indeed, it was Chase’s widespread gambling influence on his peers that likely prompted Kyle Lobner in the online Baseball Almanac to say:
Many baseball historians see Chase as the primary source of corruption within his era, and a few name Chase as being responsible for the birth of the Commissioner's office, which was created to help curb corruption in baseball. Chase was definitely an excellent player: a quote from a June 1913 issue of The Sporting News sums it up nicely. "That he can play first base as it never was and perhaps never will be played is a well known truth," it says. "That he will is a different matter." (footnote 7)
There is some controversy over whether Chase was ever officially banned from Major League Baseball. While many writers say that Chase was banned, others assert that there is no evidence of his actual banning. However, it matters little, because it was very clear that after 1919 Hal Chase could not get a job in organized baseball and was seen as a pariah. That being said, Chase’s talent and fan appeal were clear, and many, many newspapers reported his death in 1947.
Unlike Pete Rose, Hal Chase at least showed some remorse for his behavior in the twilight years of his life. Several quotes stand out:
So while Pete Rose may be the modern king of showing boorish behavior that laughs in the face of baseball, Hal Chase's crimes against the game make Pete Rose look saintly by comparison.
Unlike Pete Rose, Hal Chase at least showed some remorse for his behavior in the twilight years of his life. Several quotes stand out:
"You note that I am not in the Hall of Fame. Some of the old-timers said I was one of the greatest fielding first basemen of all time. When I die, movie magnates will make no picture like Pride of the Yankees, which honored that great player, Lou Gehrig. I guess that's the answer, isn't it? Gehrig had a good name; one of the best a man could have. I am an outcast, and I haven't a good name. I'm the loser, just like all gamblers are. I lived to make great plays. What did I gain? Nothing. Everything was lost because I raised hell after hours. I was a wise guy, a know-it-all, I guess." (footnote 5)
"Baseball was good to me. I guess I made $150,000 in all - and legitimately - in Baseball. But I muffed my big chance. I guess I got a little too smart." (footnote 9)
So while Pete Rose may be the modern king of showing boorish behavior that laughs in the face of baseball, Hal Chase's crimes against the game make Pete Rose look saintly by comparison.
For More on Hal Chase....
For more reading on Hal Chase, I suggest Donald Dewey and Nicholas Acocella’s book titled The Black Prince of Baseball: Hal Chase and the Mythology of the Game. (2004, Sport Media Publishing). While I did not read this book in preparing this post, it seems to be quoted frequently by people who have written about Hal Chase online.
Footnotes
Footnotes
5. Much of the general knowledge about Hal Chase in this post comes from his Wikipedia page, which is quite thorough and largely consistent with other sources. That page can be found here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hal_Chase
9. Ottawa Evening Citizen, May 19, 1947, p. 21. Article can be found here: http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=fB4vAAAAIBAJ&sjid=IdwFAAAAIBAJ&pg=3062,4392193&dq=clark-griffith+hal-chase&hl=en
10. http://insidetv.ew.com/2012/07/17/tlc-pete-rose/
10. http://insidetv.ew.com/2012/07/17/tlc-pete-rose/
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