Today in White Sox History: February 20
Women players get A League of Their Own
1943
Although not a White Sox note per se, still a fun, Chicago/Midwest-based one: The charter for the All-American Girls Softball League (AAGSL) is drawn up, by Cubs owner Philip Wrigley and Brooklyn Dodgers exec Branch Rickey. The two men were anticipating the major leagues being shut down due to World War II, although that turned out not to be the case.
The league, which changed to hardball and became the AAGPBL (as depicted in the terrific “A League of Their Own” film), ran from 1943 to 1954 and was played in 14 Midwestern (Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan, Indiana and Minnesota) cities during that run.
The AAGPBL peaked in 1948, with its 10 teams collectively drawing more than one million total fans.
1985
Ryan Sweeney, a second round draft choice of the White Sox in 2003, was born in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. The outfielder blew pretty well through three years of minors seasoning before making his MLB debut for the 2006 White Sox. A disappointing 2007 year in both the majors and Triple-A keyed Sweeney’s inclusion in the ill-fated Nick Swisher trade with Oakland in 2008. His -0.8 WAR compiled over just 33 major league games seemed like it would regret-proof his inclusion in the deal, but Sweeney went to the A’s and put up 5.0 in 2008-09. Ultimately Sweeney would fail to reach stardom or even regular play in the majors, finishing his career with the Cubs in 2014, with 6.9 WAR and a 94 OPS+ on his ledger.
1992
Barely one month after being traded to the White Sox from the New York Yankees, Steve Sax ends up in jail during the “Homer at the Bat” episode of The Simpsons.
Despite a miracle turnaround and undefeated season powered by Homer Simpson’s “Wonderbat,” Sax is one of nine baseball superstars hired by Montgomery Burns to play on his Springfield Nuclear Power Plant softball team after making a million-dollar bet on the outcome of the championship game. Sax is playing upright bass in a jazz band called The Steve Sax Trio when Burns hires him as a ringer at the plant.
Nearly all of the stars fail to show up for the game — with miscellaneous pratfalls creating obstacles (Ken Griffey Jr. develops gigantism after drinking too much of Burns’ “delicious” nerve tonic, Jose Canseco is derailed when a desperate woman asks him to save her possessions in a house fire, Mike Scioscia is hospitalized after being exposed to radiation at the plant, Don Mattingly is suspended by Burns for failing to trim his sideburns, etc.) — which is won on a walk-off HBP, as pinch-hitter Homer takes a bases-loaded pitch to the head for the win.
Sax, for his part, ends up arrested and facing six life sentences, as the Springfield Police suspect him (at the time of production, still a Yankee) for being responsible for a string of murders in New York City. Sax spends the game behind bars.
Sadly, the episode foretold a terrible career with the White Sox ahead for Sax, as he forgot how to hit (coming off of a .304 average/110 OPS+ season in New York, Sax fell to .236 and a 69 OPS+ over 200 games in Chicago in 1992 and 1993) and developed throwing yips that forced him from second base to left field.
In addition to future White Sox players Canseco and Griffey, the producers originally had asked Carlton Fisk to appear in the episode (presumably, for a dose of radiation poisoning) but the catcher declined.
All of the players involved proved to be amenable and excited — except Canseco, who didn’t like his role and forced a re-write into his hero turn.