It was the greatest scandal in the history of baseball. Eight members of the Chicago White Sox were accused of throwing the 1919 World Series against the Cincinnati Reds. The great outfielder "Shoeless" Joe Jackson; outfielder Oscar "Happy" Felsh; infielders Buck Weaver, Arnold "Chick" Gandil, Fred McMullin and Charles "Swede" Risberg; and pitchers Eddie Cicotte and Claude "Lefty" Williams were implicated in the scandal that captured national attention and earned the team the nickname "Black Sox."

Gambler Arnold Rothstein allegedly paid the men to deliberately lose the series while he placed heavy bets on the Reds to win.

In September 1920, a grand jury convened to consider the case. On Sept. 28, Eddie Cicotte confessed to involvement in the fix. The eight players were indicted. White Sox owner Charles Comiskey, in the middle of a pennant race, notified them by telegram that they were suspended indefinitely.

The eight players were acquitted, and Mr. Rothstein was exonerated. The players were banned from baseball.

One member of that notorious team came through the ordeal with a clear conscious. Harry "Nemo" Leibold was one of just three members of the starting rotation who were not implicated in that World Series fix. The outfielder was born in 1892 in Butler, Ind., and began his major league career in 1911 with the Milwaukee Brewers. In 1917, he and the White Sox went to the World Series, beating the New York Giants four games to two.

Leibold went to the World Series again in 1924 with the Washington Senators. They beat the New York Giants four games to three.

In 1926, Leibold was sent to he minor leagues, a move that would eventually bring him to Scranton. This city had been building its minor league club for some years. In 1939, the Boston Red Sox chose Scranton as its farm team. Members of the Class A Eastern League, the Scranton Red Sox finished their first season with 80 wins and 60 losses, going on to beat Springfield and Albany in the playoffs.

And they did it all with Nemo Leibold as their manager.

"The year 1939 can truly be rated as one of the most exciting in the long history of profession baseball in Scranton," writes Nicholas E. Petula in his book "A History of Scranton Professional Baseball: 1865-1953."

This was a good year for Scranton, and it was a good year for the Eastern League. Part of the problem behind the 1919 World Series scandal was that the players were poorly compensated for their efforts. Comiskey had worked hard to build a major league team, and he had promised his players bonuses if they won in 1917. Instead, their compensation for winning the series that year was a case of inexpensive champagne.

Scranton had been working hard to build its minor league team. When they finished on top in 1939, the team received a $2,000 bonus. The Scranton Red Sox began to attract a lot of fans, breaking the regular season home game attendance record with 317,249, according to Mr. Petula's book.

Leibold and his Scranton Red Sox had proven themselves. With their successful first season, the owners decided to build a first-class stadium. They chose a site on Monroe Avenue in Dunmore, just over the Scranton line. Samuel G. Mastriani designed the $150,000 facility, which seated 13,500 and was equipped for both day and night games.

It opened on May 5, 1940. With Leibold again managing, the team went on to win another pennant.

Leibold left Scranton in 1944 to manage the Louisville Colonels. His good name is forever tied to the greatest scandal in baseball's history and to the most exciting season of an era of Scranton baseball.

For a detailed account of the 1919 World Series scandal, visit the Chicago Historical Society at www.chicago hs.org/history/blacksox.html.

CHERYL A. KASHUBA is a freelance writer specializing in local history. Visit her at scrantonhistory.com. Contact the writer: localhistory@timesshamrock.com

Harry Leibold