Joseph Jefferson Jackson (July 16, 1887 – December 5, 1951), nicknamed "Shoeless Joe", was an American professional
baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...
outfielder
An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to catch ...
who played in
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...
(MLB) in the early 20th century. His .356
career batting average is the fourth-highest in MLB history. Jackson is often remembered for his association with the
Black Sox Scandal
The Black Sox Scandal was a match fixing, game-fixing scandal in Major League Baseball (MLB) in which eight members of the Chicago White Sox were accused of intentionally losing the 1919 World Series against the Cincinnati Reds in exchange for p ...
, in which eight members of the
1919 Chicago White Sox participated in a conspiracy to
fix the
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...
. As a result, Commissioner
Kenesaw Mountain Landis
Kenesaw Mountain Landis (; November 20, 1866 – November 25, 1944) was an American jurist who served as a United States federal judge from 1905 to 1922 and the first Commissioner of Baseball, commissioner of baseball from 1920 until his death. ...
permanently banned Jackson and the other seven players from professional baseball after the 1920 season. During the World Series in question, Jackson had led both teams in several statistical categories and set a World Series record with 12 base hits, including, during the last game, the only home run in that World Series. Jackson's role in the scandal, banishment from the game, and exclusion from the
Baseball Hall of Fame
The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by a private foundation. It serves as the central collection and gathering space for the history of baseball in the United S ...
have been fiercely debated. In 2025, Commissioner
Rob Manfred
Robert Dean Manfred Jr. (born September 28, 1958) is an American lawyer and business executive who is serving as the tenth commissioner of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously served as MLB's chief operating officer. Manfred succeeded Bud S ...
removed Jackson,
Pete Rose
Peter Edward Rose Sr. (April 14, 1941 – September 30, 2024), nicknamed "Charlie Hustle", was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1963 to 1986, most prominently as a member of ...
, and other deceased players from the MLB's permanently ineligible list, thus lifting the ban.
Jackson played for three MLB teams during his 12-year career, primarily in
left field. He spent 1908–1909 as a member of the
Philadelphia Athletics
The Philadelphia Athletics were a Major League Baseball team that played in Philadelphia from 1901 to 1954, when they moved to Kansas City, Missouri, and became the Kansas City Athletics. Following another move in 1967, they became the Oakland ...
and 1910 with the minor league
New Orleans Pelicans
The New Orleans Pelicans are an American professional basketball team based in New Orleans. The Pelicans compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Division of the Western Confere ...
before joining the
Cleveland Naps
The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. Since , the team has played its home gam ...
at the end of the 1910 season. He was still considered a
rookie
A rookie is a person new to an occupation, profession, or hobby. In sports, a ''rookie'' is a professional athlete in their first season (or year).
In contrast with a veteran who has experience, a rookie is typically considered needing more tra ...
in 1911 when he hit for a .408 average, a single-season record for a rookie that still stands. He remained in Cleveland until early in the 1915 season; he then played for the White Sox through 1920. Later, Jackson played baseball under assumed names throughout the South.
Jackson holds the
Cleveland Guardians
The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. Since , the team has played its home gam ...
and
Chicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The club plays its ...
franchise records for
triples in a season and career batting average. In 1999, he ranked number 35 on ''
The Sporting News
''The Sporting News'' is a website and former magazine publication owned by Sporting News Holdings, which is a U.S.-based sports media company formed in December 2020 by a private investor consortium. It was originally established in 1886 as a ...
'' list of the 100 Greatest Baseball Players and was a finalist for the
Major League Baseball All-Century Team
In 1999, the Major League Baseball All-Century Team was chosen by popular vote of Sports fan, fans. To select the team, a panel of experts first compiled a list of the 100 greatest Major League Baseball (MLB) players from the 20th century. Over tw ...
. The fans voted him as the 12th-best outfielder of all time. He also ranks 33rd on the all-time list for non-pitchers according to the
win shares formula developed by
sabermetrician Bill James
George William James (born October 5, 1949) is an American baseball writer, historian, and statistician whose work has been widely influential. Since 1977, James has written more than two dozen books about baseball history and statistics. His a ...
. Baseball legend
Babe Ruth
George Herman "Babe" Ruth (February 6, 1895 – August 16, 1948) was an American professional Baseball in the United States, baseball player whose career in Major League Baseball (MLB) spanned 22 seasons, from 1914 through 1935. Nickna ...
said that he modeled his hitting method after Jackson's.
[ (archived January 26, 2009).]
Early life

Jackson was born in
Pickens County, South Carolina
Pickens County is a county located in the northwest part of the U.S. state of South Carolina. As of the 2020 census, its population was 131,404. Its county seat is Pickens. The county was created in 1826. It is part of the Greenville-Anders ...
, the oldest son of George Jackson, a
sharecropper
Sharecropping is a legal arrangement in which a landowner allows a tenant (sharecropper) to use the land in return for a share of the crops produced on that land. Sharecropping is not to be conflated with tenant farming, providing the tenant a ...
. While Jackson was still a baby, his father moved the family to
Pelzer, South Carolina.
A few years later, the family moved to a
company town
A company town is a place where all or most of the stores and housing in the town are owned by the same company that is also the main employer. Company towns are often planned with a suite of amenities such as stores, houses of worship, schoo ...
called
Brandon Mill on the outskirts of
Greenville, South Carolina
Greenville ( ; ) is a city in Greenville County, South Carolina, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 70,720 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of municipalities in South Carolina, sixth-most pop ...
.
[Fleitz p. 7] An attack of
measles
Measles (probably from Middle Dutch or Middle High German ''masel(e)'', meaning "blemish, blood blister") is a highly contagious, Vaccine-preventable diseases, vaccine-preventable infectious disease caused by Measles morbillivirus, measles v ...
almost killed him when he was 10. He was bedridden for two months and paralyzed while he was nursed back to health by his mother.
[Fleitz p. 9]
Starting at the age of 6 or 7, Jackson worked in one of the town's textile mills as a "linthead", a derogatory name for a mill hand.
Family finances required Jackson to take 12-hour shifts in the mill, and since education at the time was a luxury the Jackson family couldn't afford, Jackson was functionally illiterate.
His lack of education ultimately became an issue throughout Jackson's life. It even affected the value of his memorabilia in the collectibles market; because Jackson was illiterate, he often had his wife forge his signature. Consequently, anything provably autographed by Jackson himself brings a premium when sold, including one autograph which was sold for $23,500 in 1990 ().
In restaurants, rather than ask someone to read the menu to him, he would wait until his teammates ordered and then order one of the items that he heard.
In 1900, when he was 13 years old, his mother was approached by one of the owners of the
Brandon Mill, and he started to play for the mill's baseball team.
[Fleitz p. 10] He was the youngest player on the team. He was paid $2.50 to play on Saturdays ().
Jackson was initially a pitcher, but one day he accidentally broke another player's arm with a
fastball
The fastball is the most common type of pitch (baseball), pitch thrown by pitchers in baseball and softball. Its distinctive feature is its high speed. "Power pitchers," such as former major leaguers Nolan Ryan and Roger Clemens, relied on the ...
. No one wanted to bat against him, so the team manager placed him in the outfield. Jackson's hitting ability made him a celebrity around town. Around that time, he was given a
baseball bat
A baseball bat is a smooth wooden or metal Club (weapon), club used in the sport of baseball to hit the Baseball (ball), ball after it is thrown by the pitcher. By regulation it may be no more than in diameter at the thickest part and no more t ...
that he named
Black Betsy.
He was compared to
Champ Osteen, another player from the mills who made it to the majors.
Jackson moved from mill team to mill team in search of better pay, playing
semi-professional
Semi-professional sports are sports in which athletes are not participating on a full-time basis, but still receive some payment. Semi-professionals are not amateur because they receive regular payment from their team, but generally at a cons ...
baseball by 1905.
Nickname
In an interview published in the October 1949 edition of
''Sport'' magazine, Jackson recalled that he got his nickname during a mill game played in
Greenville, South Carolina
Greenville ( ; ) is a city in Greenville County, South Carolina, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 70,720 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of municipalities in South Carolina, sixth-most pop ...
. Jackson had blisters on his foot from a new pair of
cleats
Cleat may refer to:
* Cleat (nautical), a fitting on ships, balls, and balls to which ropes are tied
* Cleat hitch, a knot
* Cleat, Orkney, a List of places in Orkney#C, place in Scotland
* Cleat (shoe), a type or part of a shoe
* Cleats (comic st ...
, which hurt so much that he took his shoes off before he was
at bat
In baseball, an at bat (AB) or time at bat is a batter's turn batting against a pitcher. An at bat is different from a plate appearance. A batter is credited with a plate appearance regardless of what happens upon completion of his turn at bat, ...
. As play continued, a heckling fan noticed Jackson running to third base in his socks and shouted, "You shoeless
son of a gun, you!" and the resulting nickname "Shoeless Joe" stuck with him throughout the remainder of his life.
Professional career
Early professional career
In 1908, Jackson began his professional baseball career with his hometown minor league team, the
Greenville Spinners
The Greenville Spinners was a primary name of the minor league baseball teams located in Greenville, South Carolina between 1907 and 1962. Greenville teams played as members of the South Carolina League in 1907, Carolina Association (1908–19 ...
of the
Carolina Association, married 15-year-old Katie Wynn, and eventually signed with
Connie Mack
Cornelius McGillicuddy (December 22, 1862 – February 8, 1956), better known as Connie Mack, was an American professional baseball catcher, manager, and team owner. Mack holds records for the most wins (3,731), losses (3,948), ties (76), and ga ...
to play for the
Philadelphia Athletics
The Philadelphia Athletics were a Major League Baseball team that played in Philadelphia from 1901 to 1954, when they moved to Kansas City, Missouri, and became the Kansas City Athletics. Following another move in 1967, they became the Oakland ...
.

Jackson started the season with the Spinners for $75 a month and hit .346 to lead the Carolina Association in batting average, hits, and RBI for 1908. In August 1908, his contract was purchased by Connie Mack of the Philadelphia Athletics for $900. Jackson immediately reported to the Athletics and made his major league debut.
For the first two years of his career, Jackson had some trouble adjusting to life with the Athletics; reports conflict as to whether he did not like the big city or was bothered by hazing from teammates. Consequently, he spent much of that time in the
minor leagues. Between 1908 and 1909, Jackson appeared in just 10 MLB games.
During the 1909 season, Jackson played 118 games for the
South Atlantic League
The South Atlantic League, often informally called the Sally League, is a Minor League Baseball league with teams predominantly in states along the Atlantic coast of the United States from New York to Georgia. A Class A league for most of its h ...
's
Savannah Indians
The Savannah Pathfinders was the original name of the American minor league baseball franchise that represented Savannah, Georgia, during the 20th century.
While Savannah's minor league teams sported at least ten nicknames during the century, ...
. He batted .358 for the year.

The Athletics gave up on Jackson in 1910 and traded him to the
Cleveland Naps
The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. Since , the team has played its home gam ...
. He spent most of 1910 with the
New Orleans Pelicans
The New Orleans Pelicans are an American professional basketball team based in New Orleans. The Pelicans compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Division of the Western Confere ...
of the
Southern Association
The Southern Association (SA) was a higher-level minor league in American organized baseball from 1901 through 1961. For most of its existence, the Southern Association was two steps below the Major Leagues; it was graded Class B (1902-19 ...
, where he won the batting title and led the team to the pennant. Late in the season, Jackson was called up to play on the big league team. He appeared in 20 games for the Naps and managed a batting average of .387.
Major League career
In 1911, his first full MLB season, Jackson set several rookie records. His .408
batting average
Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic.
Cricket
In cricket, a player's batting average is ...
that season is a record that still stands and was good for second overall in the league behind
Ty Cobb
Tyrus Raymond Cobb (December 18, 1886 – July 17, 1961), nicknamed "the Georgia Peach", was an American professional baseball center fielder. A native of rural Narrows, Georgia, Cobb played 24 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). He spent ...
's .419 - one of the few times in baseball history that a batting average above .400 did not win a batting title. His .468 on-base percentage led the league. The following season, Jackson batted .395 and led the
American League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is the younger of two sports leagues, leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western L ...
in
hits,
triples, and total bases. On April 20, 1912, Jackson scored the first run in
Tiger Stadium. The next year, he led the league with 197 hits and a .551
slugging percentage
In baseball statistics, slugging percentage (SLG) is a measure of the batting productivity of a hitter. It is calculated as total bases divided by at-bats, through the following formula, where ''AB'' is the number of at-bats for a given player, an ...
.
In August 1915, Jackson was traded to the Chicago White Sox. Two years later, Jackson and the White Sox won the
American League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is the younger of two sports leagues, leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western L ...
pennant and also the
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...
. During the series, Jackson hit .307 as the White Sox defeated the
New York Giants
The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The ...
.
Jackson missed most of the 1918 season while working in a shipyard because of
World War I
World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
. In 1919, he returned to post a strong .351 average during the regular season and .375 in the World Series. However, the heavily favored White Sox lost the series to the
Cincinnati Reds
The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. The Reds compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Divisi ...
. The following season, the 32-year-old Jackson batted .382. He was having one of his best overall seasons, leading the American League in triples and setting by large margins career marks for home runs, RBI, and fewest strikeouts per plate appearance until he was suspended with seven other members of the White Sox after allegations surfaced that the team had thrown the previous World Series.
Black Sox Scandal

After the White Sox lost the
1919 World Series
The 1919 World Series was the championship series in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the 1919 Major League Baseball season, 1919 season. The 16th edition of the World Series, it matched the American League champion 1919 Chicago White Sox season, ...
to the
Cincinnati Reds
The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. The Reds compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Divisi ...
, Jackson and seven other White Sox players were accused of accepting $5,000 each () to
throw the Series. In September 1920, a
grand jury
A grand jury is a jury empowered by law to conduct legal proceedings, investigate potential criminal conduct, and determine whether criminal charges should be brought. A grand jury may subpoena physical evidence or a person to testify. A grand ju ...
was convened to investigate the allegations.
Jackson's 12 base hits set a Series record that was not broken until
1964
Events January
* January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved.
* January 5 – In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patria ...
, and he led both teams with a .375 batting average (.286 in the games the White Sox lost and .545 in the games they won). He committed no charged errors and threw out a runner at the plate.
However, the Reds hit an unusually large number of triples, three out of nine total, to Jackson's position in left field. The Sox pitchers said the team's outfielders were playing out of position and slowly fielding balls.
Jackson admitted to participating in the
fix during grand jury testimony on September 28, 1920, although he maintained he had not taken any on-field actions in exchange for the $5000 he received.
In 1921, a Chicago jury acquitted Jackson and his seven teammates of wrongdoing. Nevertheless,
Kenesaw Mountain Landis
Kenesaw Mountain Landis (; November 20, 1866 – November 25, 1944) was an American jurist who served as a United States federal judge from 1905 to 1922 and the first Commissioner of Baseball, commissioner of baseball from 1920 until his death. ...
, the newly appointed
Commissioner of Baseball
The commissioner of baseball is the chief executive officer of Major League Baseball (MLB) and the associated Minor League Baseball (MiLB) – a constellation of leagues and clubs known as " organized baseball". Under the direction of the commiss ...
, imposed a lifetime ban on all eight players. "Regardless of the verdict of juries," Landis declared, "no player that throws a ballgame; no player that undertakes or promises to throw a ballgame; no player that sits in a conference with a bunch of crooked players and gamblers where the ways and means of throwing games are planned and discussed and does not promptly tell his club about it, will ever play professional baseball."
After the grand jury returned its indictments, Charley Owens of the ''Chicago Daily News'' wrote a regretful tribute headlined, "Say it ain't so, Joe." The phrase became legendary when another reporter later erroneously attributed it to a child outside the courthouse:
When Jackson left the criminal court building in the custody of a sheriff after telling his story to the grand jury, he found several hundred youngsters, aged from 6 to 16, waiting for a glimpse of their idol. One child stepped up to the outfielder, and, grabbing his coat sleeve, said:
"It ain't true, is it, Joe?"
"Yes, kid, I'm afraid it is," Jackson replied. The boys opened a path for the ball player and stood in silence until he passed out of sight.
"Well, I'd never have thought it," sighed the lad.
In an interview in ''
Sport
Sport is a physical activity or game, often Competition, competitive and organization, organized, that maintains or improves physical ability and skills. Sport may provide enjoyment to participants and entertainment to spectators. The numbe ...
'' nearly three decades later, Jackson confirmed that the legendary exchange never occurred.
Dispute over Jackson's guilt

Jackson's involvement in the scandal remains controversial to this day. He reportedly refused the $5,000 bribe twice—even though it would effectively double his salary—only to have teammate
Lefty Williams
Claude Preston "Lefty" Williams (March 9, 1893 – November 4, 1959) was an American pitcher in Major League Baseball. He is probably best known for his involvement in the 1919 World Series fix, known as the Black Sox Scandal.
Career
Willi ...
toss the cash on the floor of his hotel room. Jackson then tried to tell White Sox owner
Charles Comiskey about the fix. Still, Comiskey refused to meet with him.
Unable to afford legal counsel, Jackson was represented by team attorney Alfred Austrian—a clear conflict of interest. Before Jackson's
grand jury
A grand jury is a jury empowered by law to conduct legal proceedings, investigate potential criminal conduct, and determine whether criminal charges should be brought. A grand jury may subpoena physical evidence or a person to testify. A grand ju ...
testimony, Austrian allegedly elicited Jackson's admission of his supposed role in the fix by plying him with whiskey.
Austrian also persuaded the nearly illiterate Jackson to sign a waiver of immunity from prosecution.
Years later, the other seven players implicated in the scandal confirmed that Jackson was never at any meetings. Williams said they only mentioned Jackson's name to give their plot more credibility, although he did not say why Jackson would have been paid $5,000 had that been the case. Jackson's performance during the series itself lends further credence to his assertions, although the game records show that he hit far better during the "clean" games than those thrown.
A 1993 article in ''The American Statistician'' reported the results of a statistical analysis of Jackson's contribution during the 1919 World Series and concluded that there was "substantial support to Jackson's subsequent claims of innocence".
An article in the September 2009 issue of ''Chicago Lawyer'' magazine argued that
Eliot Asinof's 1963 book ''Eight Men Out'', purporting to confirm Jackson's guilt, was based on inaccurate information. For example, Jackson never confessed to throwing the series as Asinof claimed. Further, Asinof omitted key facts from publicly available documents, such as the 1920 grand jury records and proceedings of Jackson's successful 1924 lawsuit against Comiskey to recover back pay for the 1920 and 1921 seasons. Asinof's use of fictional characters within a supposedly non-fiction account also damaged the book's historical accuracy.
In 1989, MLB Commissioner
A. Bartlett Giamatti declined to reinstate Jackson because the case was "now best given to historical analysis and debate as opposed to a present-day review with an eye to reinstatement."
In November 1999, the
U.S. House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...
passed a resolution lauding Jackson's sporting achievements and encouraging MLB to rescind his ineligibility. The resolution was symbolic since the U.S. government had no jurisdiction in the matter, and Jackson died in 1951, some 48 years earlier. Commissioner
Bud Selig
Allan Huber "Bud" Selig
(; born July 30, 1934) is an American baseball executive who currently serves as the commissioner emeritus of baseball. Previously, he served as the ninth commissioner of baseball from 1998 to 2015. He initially served a ...
stated that Jackson's case was under review, but no decision was issued during Selig's tenure.
In 2015, the
Shoeless Joe Jackson Museum formally petitioned Commissioner
Rob Manfred
Robert Dean Manfred Jr. (born September 28, 1958) is an American lawyer and business executive who is serving as the tenth commissioner of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously served as MLB's chief operating officer. Manfred succeeded Bud S ...
for reinstatement, on grounds that Jackson had "more than served his sentence" in the 95 years since his banishment by Landis. Manfred denied the request after an official review, writing: "The results of this work demonstrate to me that it is not possible now, over 95 years since those events took place and were considered by Commissioner Landis, to be certain enough of the truth to overrule Commissioner Landis' determinations".
In 2020, ESPN reported that MLB had shifted its policy and that the league "has no hold on banned players after they die because the ineligible list bars players from privileges that include a job with a major league club." It is unclear how that might affect Jackson's Hall of Fame prospects.
In 2025, Manfred announced that MLB had changed its policy such that all players were removed from the permanently ineligible list upon death. With this decision, Jackson was once more eligible for the Hall of Fame. Jackson, along with other reinstated players, will be eligible for consideration by the Hall of Fame's Classic Baseball Era Committee in 2027.
Career statistics
See ''
baseball statistics
Baseball statistics include a variety of metrics used to evaluate player and team performance in the sport of baseball.
Because the flow of a baseball game has natural breaks to it, and player activity is characteristically distinguishable ind ...
'' for an explanation of these statistics.
Later life

During the remaining 20 years of his baseball career, Jackson played with and
managed several semi-professional teams, most located in
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States
Georgia may also refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Georgia (name), a list of pe ...
and
South Carolina
South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...
, under assumed names.
In 1922, Jackson moved to
Savannah, Georgia
Savannah ( ) is the oldest city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia and the county seat of Chatham County, Georgia, Chatham County. Established in 1733 on the Savannah River, the city of Savannah became the Kingdom of Great Brita ...
, and opened a
dry cleaning
Dry cleaning is any cleaning process for clothing and textiles using a solvent other than water. Clothes are instead soaked in a water-free liquid solvent (usually non-polar, as opposed to water which is a Solvent#Solvent classifications, polar ...
business with his wife.
In 1933, the Jacksons moved back to
Greenville, South Carolina
Greenville ( ; ) is a city in Greenville County, South Carolina, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 70,720 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of municipalities in South Carolina, sixth-most pop ...
. After opening a barbecue restaurant, Jackson and his wife opened "Joe Jackson's Liquor Store", which they operated until his death. One of the better-known stories of Jackson's post-major league life occurred at the store.
Ty Cobb
Tyrus Raymond Cobb (December 18, 1886 – July 17, 1961), nicknamed "the Georgia Peach", was an American professional baseball center fielder. A native of rural Narrows, Georgia, Cobb played 24 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). He spent ...
and sportswriter
Grantland Rice
Henry Grantland Rice (November 1, 1880 – July 13, 1954) was an American sportswriter and poet known as the "Dean of American Sports Writers". He coined the famous phrase that it was not important whether you “won or lost, but how you playe ...
entered the store, with Jackson showing no sign of recognition of Cobb. After making his purchase, Cobb finally asked Jackson, "Don't you know me, Joe?" Jackson replied, "Sure, I know you, Ty, but I wasn't sure you wanted to know me. A lot of them don't."
As he aged, Jackson began to suffer from heart trouble. In 1951, at the age of 64, he died of a
heart attack
A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...
.
Jackson was the first of the eight banned players to die and is buried at Woodlawn Memorial Park in Greenville. He had no children, but he and his wife raised two of his nephews.
Legacy
Though Jackson was banned from Major League Baseball, statues and parks have been constructed in his honor. One of the landmarks built for him was a memorial park in Greenville, Shoeless Joe Jackson Memorial Park.
A life-size statue of Jackson, created by South Carolina sculptor Doug Young, also stands in Greenville's West End.
In 2006, Jackson's original home was moved to a location adjacent to
Fluor Field in
downtown Greenville. The home was restored and opened in 2008 as the
Shoeless Joe Jackson Museum.
The address is 356 Field Street, in honor of his lifetime .356 batting average. The restoration and move were chronicled on
TLC
TLC may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Television
* ''TLC'' (TV series), a 2002 British situational comedy television series that aired on BBC2
* TLC (TV network), formerly the Learning Channel, an American cable TV network
** TLC (Asia), an A ...
's reality show ''The Real Deal'' episode "A Home Run for Trademark", which aired March 31, 2007.
Richard C. Davis, the owner of Trademark Properties, hired
Josh Hamilton
Joshua Holt Hamilton (born May 21, 1981) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as an outfielder from 2007 to 2015, most prominently as a member of the Texas Rangers (baseball), Texas Rangers teams ...
as the construction foreman.
In 1951, Jackson was inducted into the
Cleveland Indians Hall of Fame as part of the inaugural class. The selection was controversial at the time because although he had not yet been barred from consideration for the National Baseball Hall of Fame, he had also not been enshrined therein. Additionally, his tenure with the Naps/Indians was relatively short. However, an outpouring of support from Indians fans convinced the sports editors voting on the selections to elect him unanimously.
Jackson was inducted into the
Baseball Reliquary's
Shrine of the Eternals in 2002.
["Shrine of the Eternals – Inductees"](_blank)
. Baseball Reliquary. Retrieved August 14, 2019.
Jackson's first relative to play professional baseball since his banishment was
catcher
Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the catc ...
Joseph Ray Jackson. The great-great-grandnephew of Shoeless Joe batted .386 for
The Citadel in 2013 and was then drafted by the
Texas Rangers. Later that year, he made his professional debut with the
Northwest League
The Northwest League is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Northwestern United States and Western Canada. A Class A Short Season league for most of its history, the league was promoted to High-A as part of Major League Baseba ...
's
Spokane Indians.
In October 2021, a signed photograph of Jackson sold for $1.47 million, making it the most expensive sports photograph.
Following a December 2024 meeting by Commissioner
Rob Manfred
Robert Dean Manfred Jr. (born September 28, 1958) is an American lawyer and business executive who is serving as the tenth commissioner of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously served as MLB's chief operating officer. Manfred succeeded Bud S ...
with
Pete Rose
Peter Edward Rose Sr. (April 14, 1941 – September 30, 2024), nicknamed "Charlie Hustle", was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1963 to 1986, most prominently as a member of ...
's daughter Fawn Rose and her attorney, Jeffrey M. Lenkov, in association with
removing Rose's father from the Permanently Ineligible List, Manfred announced on May 2025 that a person's time on Major League Baseball's permanent ineligibility ends upon the death "of the disciplined individual," and as such Jackson had been posthumously reinstated and removed from the permanently ineligible list. Hall of Fame chairman of the board
Jane Forbes Clark confirmed that Jackson's reinstatement meant that he would also now be eligible for consideration by the Historical Overview Committee when it next meets in December 2027.
By rule, his next potential eligibility will be in the Classic Baseball (before 1980) committee during the December 2027 MLB Winter Meetings.
Films
Shoeless Joe was depicted in ''
Eight Men Out'', a 1988 film directed by
John Sayles
John Thomas Sayles (born September 28, 1950) is an American independent film director, screenwriter, editor, actor, and novelist. He is known for writing and directing the films '' The Brother from Another Planet'' (1984), '' Matewan'' (1987), ...
based on the 1963
Eliot Asinof book of the same name. The film details the Black Sox Scandal in general and has
D. B. Sweeney portraying Jackson.
Phil Alden Robinson's 1989 film ''
Field of Dreams'', based on the 1982 book ''
Shoeless Joe'' by
W. P. Kinsella, stars
Ray Liotta as Jackson.
Kevin Costner
Kevin Michael Costner (born January 18, 1955) is an American actor and filmmaker. He has received List of awards and nominations received by Kevin Costner, various accolades, including two Academy Awards, three Golden Globe Awards, and a Primeti ...
plays an
Iowa
Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...
farmer who hears a mysterious voice instructing him to build a baseball field on his farm so Shoeless Joe—among others—can play baseball again.
See also
*
List of Chicago White Sox team records
*
List of Cleveland Indians team records
*
List of people banned from Major League Baseball
A ban from Major League Baseball is a form of punishment levied by the Commissioner of Baseball (MLB), Office of the Commissioner of Major League Baseball (MLB) against a player, manager, executive, or other person connected with the league as a d ...
*
List of Major League Baseball players with a .400 batting average in a season
*
List of Major League Baseball annual doubles leaders
*
List of Major League Baseball annual triples leaders
In baseball, a Triple (baseball), triple is recorded when the ball is hit so that the Batting (baseball), batter is able to advance all the way to third base, Run (baseball), scoring any Baserunning, runners who were already on base, with no Erro ...
*
List of Major League Baseball career batting average leaders
*
*
List of Major League Baseball career slugging percentage leaders
*
List of Major League Baseball career OPS leaders
*
List of Major League Baseball career triples leaders
In baseball, a Triple (baseball), triple is a hit in which the batter advances to third base in one play, with neither the benefit of a Error (baseball), fielding error nor another runner being put out on a fielder's choice. Triples were more com ...
*
List of Major League Baseball triples records
There are various Major League Baseball records for triples.
175 career triples
Closest active players
There are no active players that are considered close to realistically reaching 175 career triples.
As of April 2023, there are no active pl ...
References
Bibliography
* ''
Eight Men Out: The Black Sox and the 1919 World Series'' (1963), by
Eliot Asinof
* ''Say It Ain't So, Joe!: The True Story of Shoeless Joe Jackson'' (1979), by Donald Gropman
* ''Shoeless: The Life And Times of Joe Jackson'' (2001), by David L. Fleitz
* ''Shoeless Joe & Me'' (2002), by
Dan Gutman
Dan Gutman (born October 19, 1955) is an American writer, primarily of children's fiction.
His works include the '' Baseball Card Adventures'' children's book series that began with '' Honus & Me'', ''The Genius Files'' series'','' and '' My Wei ...
* ''
Shoeless Joe'' (1982), novel by
W. P. Kinsella
External links
ShoelessJoeJackson.com – Jackson's official website
JOE JACKSON BASEBALL Reference Bookby Michael L. Miller
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jackson, Shoeless Joe
1887 births
1951 deaths
Chicago White Sox players
Cleveland Indians players
Cleveland Naps players
Greenville Spinners players
Major League Baseball controversies
Major League Baseball outfielders
New Orleans Pelicans (baseball) players
People from Pickens County, South Carolina
Philadelphia Athletics players
20th-century American sportsmen
Savannah Indians players
Semi-professional baseball players
Sportspeople banned for life
Baseball players from Greenville, South Carolina