Just like the 1906 and 1917 White Sox, the Toronto Blue Jays can clinch the World Series title with a win in Game 6 tonight.
The Sox are 3-1 in Game 6s of the World Series.
Here’s a recap:
*1906: WORLD CHAMPIONS!
The White Sox pulled off one of the greatest upsets in history by claiming the 1906 World Series title with an 8-3 Game 5 win over the Cubs at South Side Park.
Few had given Charles Comiskey’s “Hitless Wonders” a shot at winning the first and only All-Chicago Fall Classic against the powerhouse Cubs, who won a big league record 116 games. However, timely hitting and sterling pitching netted the Sox their first crown.
The White Sox settled this one early by scoring seven runs in the first two innings off Cubs’ ace Mordecai Brown, who was pitching on one days rest. George Davis and Jiggs Donahue drove in six of those seven runs as the Sox totaled 14 hits.
Doc White, who earned the save the day before with three shutout innings, went the distance. He gave up three runs on seven hits with four walks and two strikeouts.
Subbing at shortstop for Lee Tannehill, George Davis had three RBI for the second straight game. Jiggs Donahue also added three RBI and Edgar Hahn added four hits for the Sox.
Strangely, it is the only game won by the home team in the All-City Series.
For their triumph, Sox players each received a winner’s share of $1,874 while each Cub player received a loser’s share of $440.
The next time the White Sox and Cubs would meet in a game of consequence would be for a 1997 interleague game at Comiskey Park.
1917: WORLD CHAMPIONS!
The White Sox defeated the New York Giants 4-2 in New York to claim the 1917 World Series title in six games.
The White Sox broke a scoreless tie in Game 6 in the fourth thanks to a defensive lapse by Heinie Zimmerman. During a rundown, Zimmerman chased Eddie Collins – who reached on Zimmerman’s error — across the plate with the game’s first run. As the rundown was taking place, Joe Jackson took third and Happy Felsch checked into second.
Gandil gave the Sox a 3-0 lead when he followed with a single over first.
The Giants scored two in the fifth but could not dent starter Red Faber any further. Faber went the distance in notching his third win of the series.
Each White Sox player received a winner’s share of $3,669 while the Giants each received $2,442.
1919: KERR FOR SURE
Dickie Kerr turned in an iron-man performance in keeping the White Sox alive in this ill-fated World Series.
Kerr, who was not one of the eight Sox players in on the fix of the Series, went 10 innings for the victory in the 5-4 triumph over the Reds in Cincinnati.
The White Sox fell behind early but scored one in the fifth on a sacrifice fly RBI by Eddie Collins and three in the sixth on RBIs by Joe Jackson, Happy Felsch and Ray Schalk.
The Sox got the game-winner in the 10th when Weaver doubled, took third on Jackson’s bunt and scored on Chick Gandil’s single.
The victory pulled the Sox to within 4-2 of the best-of-nine Series. The Reds won the doomed Fall Classic in eight games.
The Series was expanded to a best-of-nine from 1919 to 1921 because of heightened interest in the event.
The eight Sox players in on the fix were eventually banned from baseball for life by Commissioner Kennesaw Mountain Landis during the 1920 season.
1959: THE END
The Los Angeles Dodgers finished off the White Sox by winning Game 6 of the 1959 World Series 9-3 before 47,653 at Comiskey Park.
The Dodgers scored two in the third and six more in the fourth to clinch their first World Series title since moving to Los Angeles.
The Sox scored three in the fourth on Ted Kluszewski’s three-run bomb but could get no closer. Kluszewski finished with a six-game Series record with 10 RBI.
Larry Sherry, the Series’ MVP, tossed 5.2 innings of shutout relief to earn the win. Sherry was 2-0 with two saves and a 0.71 ERA in the Series.
Each Dodger received a winner’s share of $11,231.18 while each Sox player got $7,257.17.