The Black Prince of Baseball
Hal Chase and the Mythology of the Game
Hal Chase and the Mythology of the Game
By Donald Dewey and Nicholas Acocella
As major league baseball emerged into the 20th century, its image was anything but pristine. Gambling by players was commonplace, and the league politics was as dirty as the basepaths, all long before the infamous Black Sox Scandal of 1919. Against this backdrop, Hal Chase emerged as one of the game's greatest players ... and one of its most scandalous characters. Donald Dewey and Nicholas Acocella document, with extraordinary research, the life and times of the first baseman known as Prince Hal; his brilliant career, his shady dealings with crooks, his battles with baseball executives, and his ultimately futile attempts to clear his name of charges that he threw games. Was he a victim or a cheat? The Black Prince of Baseball separates fact from fiction.
