{"id":5614,"date":"2010-03-10T11:33:27","date_gmt":"2010-03-10T16:33:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cgs\/?page_id=5614"},"modified":"2010-03-26T10:50:12","modified_gmt":"2010-03-26T14:50:12","slug":"playing-hardball","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cgs\/news\/collegian-archives\/collegian-spring-2010\/playing-hardball\/","title":{"rendered":"Playing Hardball"},"content":{"rendered":"

A new book from CGS prof and political pundit Tom Whalen chronicles the early dynasty of the Boston Red Sox.<\/span><\/p>\n

By Patrick L. Kennedy (COM\u201904)<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI get a lot of hate mail,\u201d says CGS Associate Professor Tom Whalen. One of Boston University\u2019s most sought-after experts on American politics, Whalen is frequently quoted in news outlets such as The Economist, The Washington Post, The Boston Herald, CNN, <\/em>and NPR<\/em>. His regular commentary on Politico<\/em><\/a>, in particular, generates a range of heated reader responses. Whalen has also written books about politics and the personalities involved. Two of his best known are Kennedy versus Lodge: The 1952 Massachusetts Senate Race <\/em>and A Higher Purpose: Profiles in Presidential Courage.<\/em><\/p>\n

But Whalen isn\u2019t only a professor of social science; he\u2019s also a Boston sports fan. Several years ago he blended his love of local sports lore with his interest in social history in Dynasty\u2019s End: Bill Russell and the 1968\u201369 World Champion Boston Celtics. <\/em>Now he\u2019s done it again, in an upcoming book tentatively titled Birth of a Red Sox Nation<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Sports reflect the broader culture in any period, Whalen says. \u201cRussell once said the three main collective activities people have taken part in throughout history are sports, politics, and religion. When you think about it, it\u2019s true; there\u2019s always some kind of organized game, organized religion, and organized political system in our society.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cParticularly in a place like Boston,\u201d says Whalen, a native of the area. \u201cThe Red Sox, sports\u2014it\u2019s in our cultural DNA. We have a long, rich history.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"The
The 1912 Boston Red Sox included Tris Speaker (top row, second from left), a Protestant who reportedly feuded with Catholic teammate Duffy Lewis (top row, far right). Photo courtesy of Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Cheap beer, bigotry, and fisticuffs<\/h3>\n

The focus of Whalen\u2019s book is the early heyday of the Boston Red Sox, who won Major League Baseball\u2019s first-ever World Series in 1903, then four more championships between 1912 and 1918. \u201cOutside of the Yankees, no other team has won that many in so short a period,\u201d Whalen points out. \u201cThat accomplishment kind of cemented the Red Sox\u2019s hold on fans for generations.\u201d<\/p>\n

It was also a team whose very origin lay in conflict. Whalen explains, \u201cWhen the American League was founded in 1901, it wasn\u2019t supposed to put a team here in Boston,\u201d per a gentlemen\u2019s agreement. \u201cBut then the National League took steps to preemptively destroy the American League, so the AL president, Ban Johnson, basically said, \u2018Screw them, I\u2019m gonna put a team in Boston.\u2019 That\u2019s why we got the Red Sox: revenge!\u201d<\/p>\n

The upstart Americans (as they were generally called until 1908) \u201cstole a bunch of players from the cross-town National team, made the ticket prices lower, and the beer prices lower,\u201d Whalen recounts. \u201cThe gate attraction was there from the beginning.\u201d<\/p>\n

The two rival leagues soon struck a truce, settling more or less into today\u2019s modern system, with a single commissioner and, of course, a World Series by 1903. But division remained a theme in the Red Sox clubhouse, even as the team reigned on the field.<\/p>\n

Tris Speaker, the club\u2019s star centerfielder from 1908 to 1915, was one of the greatest all-around players of all time, says Whalen. \u201cHe had the same lifetime batting average as Ted Williams, and the same defensive stats as Willie Mays. And he was a quick runner: he stole 52 bases in 1912, a record that stood until Tommy Harper broke it in 1969.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd meanwhile,\u201d Whalen adds, \u201che was a member of the Ku Klux Klan.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read Tom Whalen\u2019s Latest Commentary on Politico.com<\/strong><\/p>\n