Sign-In
Cart
The Louisville Grays Scandal of 1877: The Taint of Gambling at the Dawn of the National League
Paperback
Baseball & SoftballGeneral World History
ISBN13: 9780786421794
Publisher: McFarland & Company
Published: May 18 2005
Pages: 245
Weight: 0.76
Height: 0.56 Width: 6.34 Depth: 9.00
Language: English
By the mid-1870s, gambling in baseball threatened the public's confidence in the sport and its very existence as a professional enterprise. Recognizing this, Chicago owner William A. Hulbert and seven of his colleagues formed the National League, dedicating it to such high-minded ideals as preventing contract jumping and, most importantly, eliminating gambling from the sport.
Hulbert's new league was severely threatened in 1877 by a gambling scandal that rocked its foundation. In mid-season, the Louisville Grays were the league's hottest team, but a disastrous eastern road trip caused vice president Charles Chase to question the efforts of some of his players. Sure-handed infielders were making inexplicable errors, and pitcher Jim Devlin was suddenly not as sharp as he had been previously. Chase's investigation found Devlin, A.H. Nichols, W.H. Carver, and George Hall had sold games, and the four were banned from the league.
This work focuses first on the formation of the National League and the changing nature of professional baseball in the 1870s. The early seasons of the league are covered, and the author gives a detailed account of the Grays' 1877 season and the evidence against the four players. Also fully explored are the impact of the Grays scandal and its lasting influence on the governance of the sport.
Also in
Baseball & Softball
Dick Bremer: Game Used: My Life in Stitches with the Minnesota Twins
Bremer, Dick
Bruton, Jim
Hardcover
The Magical Game: The Spirit and History of Baseball's Superstitions, Rituals, and Curses
Baird, Addy
Hardcover
Fans First: Change The Game, Break the Rules & Create an Unforgettable Experience
Cole, Jesse
Paperback
The Bosses of the Bronx: The Endless Drama of the Yankees Under the House of Steinbrenner
Vaccaro, Mike
Hardcover
Unhittable: How Technology, Mavericks, and Innovators Engineered Baseball's New Era of Pitching Dominance
Friedman, Rob
Hardcover
The Last Manager: How Earl Weaver Tricked, Tormented, and Reinvented Baseball
Miller, John W.
Hardcover
It's a Numbers Game! Baseball: The Math Behind the Perfect Pitch, the Game-Winning Grand Slam, and So Much More!
National Geographic Kids
Buckley
Hardcover
True Blue: The Dramatic History of the Los Angeles Dodgers, Told by the Men Who Lived It
Delsohn, Steve
Paperback
Royal Treatment: Jackie Robinson, Montreal, and the Breaking of Baseball's Color Barrier
McLaughlin, Sean J.
Hardcover
Brain Games - To Go - Facts & Fun: Baseball: Info, Stats, Puzzles, Quizzes & More
Publications International Ltd
Brain Games
Paperback
The Cloudbuster Nine: The Untold Story of Ted Williams and the Baseball Team That Helped Win World War II
Keene, Anne R.
Paperback
The Pressure Code: How Elite Performers Align Their Energy, Emotions, and Environment
Stacy, Jason
Hardcover
The Chosen City, The Owner, the Players, and the New Hampshire City that Integrated Baseball in the United States
Ranauro, Bill
Paperback
Fenway Punk: How a Boston Indie Label Scored Big on Baseball's Greatest Rivalry
Wrenn, Chris
Hardcover
Out of This World: How the Los Angeles Dodgers Captured Back-To-Back World Series Championships
Los Angeles Daily News
Paperback
Charlie Hustle: The Rise and Fall of Pete Rose, and the Last Glory Days of Baseball
O'Brien, Keith
Paperback
October Men: Reggie Jackson, George Steinbrenner, Billy Martin, and the Yankees' Miraculous Finish in 1978
Kahn, Roger
Paperback
The Franchise: San Francisco Giants: A Curated History of the Orange and Black
Pavlovic, Alex
Paperback
In the Japanese Ballpark: Behind the Scenes of Nippon Professional Baseball
Fitts, Robert K.
Hardcover
One Shot at Forever: A Small Town, an Unlikely Coach, and a Magical Baseball Season
Ballard, Chris
Paperback
Ladies and Gentlemen, the Bronx Is Burning: 1977, Baseball, Politics, and the Battle for the Soul of a City
Mahler, Jonathan
Paperback
Baseball as a Road to God: Seeing Beyond the Game
Schwartz, Peter J.
Sexton, John
Oliphant, Thomas
Paperback
The Rocket That Fell to Earth: Roger Clemens and the Rage for Baseball Immortality
Pearlman, Jeff
Paperback
Weird Moments in Cleveland Sports: Bottlegate, Bedbugs, and Burying the Pennant
Guerrieri, Vince
Paperback
L.A. Story: Shohei Ohtani, the Los Angeles Dodgers, and a Season for the Ages
Plunkett, Bill
Hardcover
We Sacrifice Everything to Baseball: How the Czech Republic's Amateur Underdogs Became World Baseball Classic Heroes
Clair, Michael
Hardcover
America's Classic Ballparks - Revised Edition: Celebrating Parks Past and Present
Buckley Jr, James
Hardcover
A Year of Playing Catch: What a Simple Daily Experiment Taught Me about Life
Bryan, Ethan D.
Paperback
The National Baseball Hall of Fame Collection: Celebrating the Game's Greatest Players
Buckley Jr, James
Hardcover
Summer of the Cheap Wieners: What the 1941 Phillies Were Up to While Joe Dimaggio Was Making History
Klugh, Justin
Paperback
The Last Best League, 10th Anniversary Edition: One Summer, One Season, One Dream
Collins, Jim
Paperback
The Complete Book of Baseball Trivia: Test Your Knowledge with 750 Questions
Chandler, Matt
Paperback
America's Ballparks: A Trip Across the Country to Visit Baseball's Playing Fields, Old and New
Hajeski, Nancy J.
Hardcover
Coaching with Purpose: The Game Plan That Helps Coaches Build Winners on and Off the Field
Madison, Keith
Paperback
Legendary Ballparks: Moments and Memories from America's Most Storied Stadiums
Enders, Eric
Hardcover
They Said It Couldn't Be Done: The '69 Mets, New York City, and the Most Astounding Season in Baseball History
Coffey, Wayne
Paperback
The Last Night of the Yankee Dynasty: The Game, the Team, and the Cost of Greatness
Olney, Buster
Paperback
Crazy '08: How a Cast of Cranks, Rogues, Boneheads, and Magnates Created the Greatest Year in Baseball History
Murphy, Cait N.
Paperback
The Glory of Their Times: The Story of the Early Days of Baseball Told by the Men Who Played It
Ritter, Lawrence S.
Paperback
Hot Foot: My Hijinks and Upside-Down Life with the World Champion New York Mets
McDowell, Roger
Feldmann, Doug
Hardcover
Slider: A baseball story that throws love, murder, drugs and corruption into the game.
Alderman, Peter
Paperback
Tenacious and True: Coastal Carolina's 2016 Championship and the Rise of a Baseball Power
Pleasant, Scott
Hardcover
Glory Days in Tribe Town: The Cleveland Indians and Jacobs Field 1994-1997
Hamilton, Tom
Pluto, Terry
Paperback
Back When We Were Colored, Helping Black Athletes During Segregation, and Being Helped By Some 'Decent White Men' Along the Way
Woolfolk, Virgal Tyrone
Paperback
Dynastic, Bombastic, Fantastic: Reggie, Rollie, Catfish, and Charlie Finley's Swingin' A's
Turbow, Jason
Paperback
The Incredible Philadelphia Phillies Trivia Book: 300 Questions for the Super-Fan
Reavy, Kevin
Spaeder, Ryan
Paperback
Ron Shandler's 2026 Baseball Forecaster: And Encyclopedia of Fanalytics
Murphy, Ray
Hershey, Brent
Kruse, Brandon
Paperback
The Ultimate Baseball Trivia Challenge: Over 600 Quiz Questions for Die-Hard Baseball Fans
Patton, Hank
Paperback
Brain Games - Baseball Goats (Greatest of All Time) Word Search: Players, Managers, Games, Mascots, & More!
Brain Games
Publications International Ltd
Paperback
Our Team: The Epic Story of Four Men and the World Series That Changed Baseball
Epplin, Luke
Paperback
Second to None: A Coach's Message of Love & Selflessness Propels Tiny El Segundo to a Dramatic Little League World Title
Coonan
Boehle, Danny Joseph
Paperback
Baseball in Paradise: A Century of Spring Training in Bradenton, Florida
Carlucci, Pasquale A.
Hardcover
The Baseball Book of Why: The Answers to Questions You've Always Wondered about from America's National Pastime
McCollister, John
Paperback
The Texas Rangers and Me: A Baseball Writer's Thirty-Two Years in Arlington
Sullivan, T. R.
Hardcover
Bleacher Seats and Luxury Suites: Democracy and Division at the Twentieth-Century Ballpark
Tannenbaum, Seth S.
Paperback
Baseball as It Was: Building Champions Before Free Agency Changed Everything
Ferling, John E.
Hardcover