The ten original inductees gathered at the grand opening of the Baseball Hall of Fame on June 12, 1939. Front row, L-to-R: Eddie Collins, Babe Ruth, Connie Mack, and Cy Young. Back row: Honus Wagner, Grover Cleveland Alexander, Tris Speaker, Napoleon Lajoie, George Sisler, and Walter Johnson. Legend has it that Ty Cobb, also inducted in 1939, missed the photo because he was uncharacteristically late for the train to Cooperstown.(Pete Peterson)

The Chicago White Sox suffered through one of the worst seasons in baseball history.

In his latest edition of Reading Baseball, Pete Peterson tries to put a smile on the faces of White Sox fans with a unique trip down memory lane.

Reading Baseball is a series of essays and commentaries by Richard “Pete” Peterson, author of Growing Up With Clemente and editor of The St. Louis Baseball Reader.