This Day In Sox History...September 28

September 28, 1902- For the second game of a doubleheader at Sportsman’s Park, the Browns and White Sox used the last day of the season to throw all non-pitchers in their game. White Sox left fielder Sam Mertes got the 10-4 win, beating St. Louis left fielder Jesse Burkett.

First baseman Frank Isbell was the ‘opener’ for the game, pitching one inning of three-hit, two-run ball. Then Mertes took over for the next seven plus innings! With just one earned run allowed, Mertes finished the year with a 1.17 ERA; it was the only pitching performance of his career. Both teams also had unorthodox lineups. St. Louis went bananas, with some players manning four different positions during the course of the game. The White Sox didn’t swap positions in-game, but there were some uncustomary assignments: White Sox two-way player Jimmy Callahan, normally a left fielder/pitcher, started at shortstop. Pitcher (and manager) Clark Griffith played left field. And Mertes himself started at catcher, then moved to the mound after one inning.

Oh, the game ended one out early, with St. Louis fans rushing the field, apparently tiring of the unique exhibition.

October 28, 1920 - Eight members of the 1919 White Sox Charles “Swede” Risberg, Arnold “Chick” Gandil, “Shoeless” Joe Jackson, George “Buck” Weaver, Eddie Cicotte, Claude “Lefty” Williams, Oscar “Happy” Felsch and Fred McMullin — were indicted for throwing the World Series, which the White Sox lost, five games to three to the Cincinnati Reds. The grand jury returned five counts of conspiracy to obtain money by false pretenses and/or via a confidence game against these eight “Black Sox.”

The group was exonerated by a Chicago jury the next summer but were nonetheless banned for life by the baseball commissioner, Kenesaw “Mountain” Landis who ironically was a White Sox fan. 

September 28, 1932 - J. Louis Comiskey, the new owner and son of Charles Comiskey tried to rebuild his franchise.

He paid an unheard-of-sum (in those days) of $150,000 to the Philadelphia A’s for infielder Jimmy Dykes, outfielder Al Simmons and utility man George “Mule” Haas. Simmons would become a member of the Hall of Fame in 1953 and in three seasons with the Sox twice drove in over 100 RBI’s. Dykes played for the Sox for four full seasons and parts of three others while also managing the club starting in 1934! He’d manage the team for 12 full seasons and a part of a 13^th. He’d have five winning years and one season at .500 in that time. He also had the distinction of scoring the first ever run in the All-Star Game going 2 for 3 in the 1933 contest.

September 28, 1959 - The White Sox team photo appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated. The caption read, “Chicago’s New Champions Sit For Their Portrait.”

September 28, 1997 - Frank Thomas won the batting championship with a .347 average. He joined Luke Appling as the only Sox players to do this at that time. Tim Anderson would also win the batting title in 2019. Thomas was one of only a handful of players in Major League history with a batting title and at least 450 home runs to their credit. Thomas was also the largest player (both in height and weight) to ever win a batting crown. Thomas had 184 hits in 530 at bats at year.

September 28, 2003 - Sox starter Esteban Loaiza recorded his 21^st win of the season, beating the Royals 5-1. The 21 wins tied the Major League record for the most wins in a season by a pitcher born in Mexico. Loaiza tied the mark set by Fernando Valenzuela in 1986. He went 21-9 with a 2.90 ERA. He’d finish second in the Cy Young voting that season. Two 1-0 losses to a last place Tigers team probably cost him winning it.