Bibb Falk : The Man Who Replaced Shoeless Joe

Born in Austin, Texas in 1899, standing six feet in height, Bibb August Falk was a classic stereo type of a tall Texan; a man who brimmed with confidence and played the game of baseball with a swagger. He played three years of varsity football and baseball at the University of Texas before being signed by Chicago White Sox following graduation in 1920. Falk reported to the White Sox that summer without ever having played one game in the minor leagues. Little did he know that in just a couple of months after arriving on the south side of Chicago, he as an untested rookie, would be called upon to confront the daunting challenge of replacing the legendary Shoeless Joe Jackson in the White Sox lineup when he was banned from organized ball for complicity in the scandal surrounding the 1919 World Series. Retiring from major league baseball after a brilliant playing career following the 1931 season, Falk returned to the University of Texas in 1940 as head baseball coach and proceeded to become a Longhorn legend. During his twenty-five year stint as head coach, Falk's teams won two National Championships, fifteen Southwest Conference titles and four co-championships. When Bibb Falk died at the age of 90 in June 1989 he was the last surviving member of the 1920 Chicago White Sox.