"Ernie Banks might have wound up with the Chicago White Sox, if not for a rare bad defensive game in a Negro leagues All-Star Game at old Comiskey Park. Legendary scout Hugh Alexander, then working for the Sox under general manager Frank Lane, told sportswriter Jerome Holtzman he was one of the first to truly scout Banks, traveling through Colorado, South Dakota and Kansas to see the skinny athletic shortstop.
"'When I got throug looking at him, Lane said 'What do you think?' Alexander recalled in the 'Jerome Holtzman Baseball Reader.' I said 'I'm not sure he can play shortstop, but he can hit with power.' Lane decided he'd take a look himself. ...After the All-Star Game, Frank told me 'I don't like as a ballplayer.' I said 'By God, I do. Why don't you like him?'
"Lane said 'He made two errors in the All-Star Game.'
"I told him 'Frank, don't pay attention to that. He can hit. Anyway, he'll make a good third baseman.'
Alexander said Lane told him to contact the Monarchs owner and make a low offer. Alexander knew Banks had gotten better offers, so he never contacted the owner."
That would have been something, Ernie Banks, Chicago Whire Sox.
Mr. White Sox. Has a Nice Ring to It. Doesn't It? --Cooetr
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