Lot # 2275: 1919 Cincinnati Reds (vs. Chicago White Sox) World Series Program

Extremely substantial 48-page program issued for the 1919 World Series held at Redland Field in Cincinnati. The 1919 World Series program at Cincinnati is a classic, both as a rare early World Series program (all pre-1920 World Series programs are rare and extremely desirable) and as a significant keepsake from the worst scandal in baseball history (eight members of the White Sox conspired to throw the Series). The program features dozens of illustrations, including a double-page team photo of the infamous “Black Sox." Also pictured inside are the 1869 Cincinnati Red Stockings (baseball's first all-professional team) and the 1882 American Association-champion Reds. It is especially ironic that a program that, by design, so ambitiously celebrates the history of the game (because 1919 was by chance the year of the Golden Jubilee of the 1869 Red Stockings) also represents baseball's darkest hour. The 1919 World Series program understandably enjoys a tremendous popularity with collectors. The preprinted lineups include Jackson, Weaver, Felsch, Gandil, Risberg, Cicotte, Schalk, and E. Collins for Chicago, and Daubert, Groh, Roush, and Kopf for Cincinnati. The large-format program (9 x 12 inches) is missing pages 21-28 (they've been replaced by photocopies). Both the front and back covers exhibit discoloration, with the front cover also displaying creasing, multiple spots of paper loss, and an edge tear. Poor condition overall. This is an extremely important program that would be a significant addition in a World Series program, classic baseball memorabilia, or "Black Sox" collection.