The History of the Chicago White Sox - Part 6

 The New York Yankees are called the “Evil Empire” for a reason. In their 121 seasons of existence, they have won 27 championships, the most out of any team in MLB, the NHL, the NFL, and the NBA. Their 40 World Series appearances are the most in MLB history. Their 241 postseason wins are the most in MLB history by nearly a hundred. They have made the postseason over 50 times. No other team has more than 40. They are the greatest franchise in baseball history by a significant margin. Every team in MLB, no matter how young or old, has a reason to hate the Yankees. In the early 1950s, the White Sox got theirs. 


The White Sox of the fifties were relevant again. For the first time since the Black Sox Scandal, they had a consistently contending roster, but seven straight years finishing behind the Yankees told them that they needed more. In 1959, they got more. 


It all started with second baseman Nellie Fox. In 1959, Fox combined incredible defense with a .306 batting average and an MLB-high 156 games played to put together the best season of his Hall of Fame career. For his efforts, he was rewarded with an all-star appearance, a gold glove award, and the title of 1959 American League MVP. This team wasn’t just a one-man show, though. 


Catcher Sherm Lollar also won a gold glove award for his defense. He combined that with an all-star appearance and a 9th place finish in AL MVP voting. 


We already know about Nellie at second base, but his double play partner at shortstop was Luis Aparicio. The 25-year old former rookie of the year fully broke out, providing Fox with the lineup support that he needed. Aparicio also won a gold glove, while adding a MLB-high 56 stolen bases. 


Center fielder Jim Landis didn’t win a gold glove in 1959, but he would win five straight in the next five years while cementing his reputation as one of the greatest defensive center fielders of all time. 


If you haven’t caught on by now, defense was kind of a strength of this team. 


You might notice that someone special wasn’t mentioned in that last section. Minnie Minoso was traded back to Cleveland a few years prior to 1959. In return the White Sox, who had an abundance of hitters, got exactly what they needed. Early Wynn was in the late stages of his future Hall of Fame career, but he was still good enough to be the ace on the mound that this team needed. At age 39, he led the team in innings pitched, doing so with an ERA of 3.17. That got him, as is becoming common with this team, an all-star appearance, a 3rd place AL MVP finish, and the 1959 American League Cy Young award. 


The 1959 Sox also had Bob Shaw, who placed third in Cy Young voting. They rounded out their big three on the mound with team legend Billy Pierce. 


Overall, this team featured five all-stars, four gold glove winners, two of the top three in Cy Young voting, all of the top three in MVP voting, four more players outside of the top three who got MVP votes, and four eventual Hall of Famers. 


This team has a case for being the greatest team in White Sox history. 


In a close race all throughout the season, the 1959 sox won the American League pennant with a record of 94-60, five games better than the second place Indians, and 15 games better than the third place Yankees. 


That only means one thing. 

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