Subscribe to Old Baseball Photos and Essays for automatic updates (sign-up block found in right side-bar)

As a Free Bonus for subscribing, you’ll get instant access to my two Special Reports: Memorable World Series Moments and Gary’s Handy Dandy World Series Reference Guide!

 Fred McMullin and the 1919 Black Sox Photo Gallery
Click on any image below to see photos in full size and to start Photo Gallery:

 

Focus on the “Eight Men Out,” Part Eight: Fred McMullin

Today we turn our attention to the eighth and perhaps the most obscure of the “Eight Men Out,” Fred McMullin. He’s not better known because he was a utility player in 1919 with only two at-bats in the infamous World Series, going 1-2 with a single.

Fred McMullin was born on October 13, 1891 in Scammon, Kansas. He played six seasons in the major leagues for the Tigers (1914) and White Sox (1916-1920). Over his career he hit .256 with one home run and 72 RBIs. He had some success as a base stealer, swiping 31 bags in 32 attempts. His best season was the fateful year of 1919 when he hit .297 in 60 at-bats with a .355 on-base percentage.

McMullin had played a key role in the 1917 World Series victory. A pivotal player in the White Sox’ stretch run to clinch the pennant, he drove in the first run of the World Series; and while he went only 3-24 at the plate, he played flawless defensive which included at least two spectacular plays.

McMullin was “tight” with conspirators Swede Risberg and Chick Gandil and was said to have eavesdropped his way into the plot to “fix” the 1919 World Series. He overheard conversations about it in the White Sox locker room and insisted on a “piece of the action.” Apparently, he even threatened to “blow the whistle” unless he was included. It’s also possible he heard about the plot from his drinking buddy, the shady gambler, Billy Maharg. Other reports have him as one of the instigators of the plot. Eddie Cicotte testified that “the idea of the fix had originated in a conversation with Gandil and McMullin.”

McMullin served as Chicago’s advance scout for the 1919 World Series, which may explain how and why he earned an equal share in the winnings ($5,000) from the fix^. Some historians have suggested that, as a means to cover himself and his co-conspirators, McMullin delivered a flawed scouting report to all the “clean” Sox about what to expect from Cincinnati’s pitchers. That notion has never been verified.

With only two at-bats in the series, he had little chance to do any “fixing.” He was not included in any of the “Seven Suspicious Plays” of sportswriter, Hugh Fullerton. Nevertheless, for his role in the conspiracy, McMullin was banned for life, along with seven of his teammates, by Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis.

Accoriding to his SABR biography, Fred McMullin’s story is a series of contrasts:

“A man once commended for chasing gamblers off a field in Boston, he was suspended permanently because he accepted a $5,000 bribe to help his team lose. He was indicted by a Chicago grand jury in a story that made headlines across the nation, yet he spent the final decade of his life as a respected lawman in California.”

McMullin never spoke publicly about his involvement in the Black Sox scandal. After baseball, he held numerous jobs throughout his life such as a carpenter, office jobs, traffic manager and Los Angeles County deputy marshal. McMullin’s final years were plagued by ill health caused by arteriosclerosis. On November 19, 1952, just over a month after his 61st birthday, he had a fatal stroke. McMullin was buried at Inglewood Park Cemetery.

Gary Livacari 

Photo Credits: All from Google search

Information: Excerpts edited from Fred McMullin SABR biography by Jacob Pomrenke: https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/7d8be958

Check out my two books, both now available on Amazon in e-book and paperback:  “Paul Pryor in His Own Words: The Life and TImes of a 20-Year Major League Umpire”and “Memorable World Series Moments.” All profits go to the Illinois Veterans Foundation

Add your name to the petition to help get Gil Hodges elected to the Hall of Fame: https://wp.me/p7a04E-5guhttps://wp.me/p7a04E-5IF

Cast Your Vote in Our New Poll Question: How Do You Feel About Judge Landis’ Verdict Against the “Eight Men Out”? https://wp.me/p7a04E-5IF