George 'Buck' Weaver
Buck Weaver is the thrid baseman for the White Sox. He's married, and the kids in his Chicago neighborhood all look up to him, one of them is even named after him. Buck is a man who sincerly loves the game, its purity. When faced with having to fix the series he's one of the few guys who decides that the money isn't worth it and plays all out while having to watch his teammates throw the series. Of all the characters in the story, he is the one we see most affected by not being able to play the game when he's banned for life. Weaver continued to apply for reinstatement every year until the end of his life.
Charles Comiskey
Comiskey is the owner of the White Sox. He's known by the players at 'Commie.' He's known for being cheap and not paying his players bonuses, and working out ways to ensure they don't hit their bonuses (he benched Eddie for 2 weeks so he wouldn't have to pay him a $10,000 bonus for winning one more game). When he finds out about the fix he does everything in his power to ensure that the players get off, but he does it so that he is able to continue to sell tickets and make a profit. He's a winer and diner and does his best to keep appearances in public.
Arnold Rothstein
Rothstein is a business man who we come to find out has been bullied by the athletes at a young age. He now controls them by manipulating whether they win or lose by paying them to take a fall. He's a man that appears to care little if at all about people as his sole focus is gaining as much power as he can.
Bill Burns
A former major league ball player who made his living mainly on the bench. He and his partner Billy are focused on Chick and Swede to convince them to fix the World Series in order that they can make a large payout. In the end, we see Bill trying to get the players paid, but when push comes to shove and he's put on the witness stand he testifies that the boys won games they weren't supposed to win and that they ruined the fix for him.
William 'Kid' Gleason
A former Major League pitcher, he once defeated Cy Young and the Indians in a 1-0 game that Dickie saw when he was a kid. Gleason knows his guys are fixing the series even before it begins. He never comes out and says it, though. He believes in his boys and gives them every opportunity to come clean and start playing ball the way he knows they can. He never turns on his team even when give the opportunity to do so under oath during the trial.
Oscar 'Hap' Felsch
Felsch is one of the Sox players who chooses to throw the series. He is flashy and makes some dazzling plays, but when it comes down to it he let's the money be his prize, even though he is barely paid a fraction of what he was promised. After the trial is over he is also very vocal to the public about the fact that he cheated as he spills the beans to guys drinking beers with him in a bar.
Eddie Cicotte
Eddie is one of the best pitchers to play the game. He's got all the pitches, including a spitter that will be outlawed the next year. When Comiskey doesn't give him his $10,000 bonus he decides to throw game 1 as he is the only player that is paid up front. As the series progresses we see the weight Eddie carries for making this decision. No money could ever replace doing the right thing, especially when he must face his wife and two kids. He is one of three players who sign a confession before trial.
Shoeless Joe Jackson
Shoeless Joe is one of the greatest players to ever put on a major league uniform. It's all he knows, he's completely devoted to the game. We see that money is put on his dresser, but we never see him touch it. We see that Joe can't write as he signs his name with a 'X,' and if baseball isn't an option he's not sure what other options he has to make a living for his family. He is one of three players to sign a confession before the trial, and once the team is banned from playing Major League ball he changes his name and plays in the Bush League.
'Chick' Gandil
Chick is one of the main conspirators that gets the team to fix the World Series. He doesn't make enough to say no to the idea, and as the Series progresses he becomes more obvious about the fact that he's throwing games. And, when we see him at the trial, he and Swede are incredibly arrogant about believing they are innocent.
'Lefty' Williams
Lefty is the number two pitcher on the Sox, and he's agreed to throw the Series as well. But, when the players aren't paid what they were promised he throws a great game and gets the win for the Sox. But, when Rothstein sends his muscle to tell him to lose game 8, he has to because the thug tells him he is going to kill his wife if he doesn't. And, with that, game 8 goes to the Reds, as well as the series.
'Swede' Risberg
Swede, along with Chick is one of the main ball players that sets up the fix for the team. He is adamant about getting everyone to participate in throwing the games, and we see his arrogance as he glides around the hotels and trains convinced that he's just done everyone a great service. But, when the money men don't pay the players we see him do everything he can to make the team believe that the situation is under control. So much so that he even believes his load of lies.
Joseph Sullivan
Sullivan is the first fixer that Chick and Swede pursue in order to get the money to fix the Series. Chick appears to be in league with the guys, but when he gets the money to pay the players up front he takes nearly all of it to place bets for himself. This sets in motion the back and forth of the series, with players sometimes throwing and some time playing on the level. When the Series turns into a court case he skips town leaving the broken pieces to be dealt with by the team.
Abe Attell
Abe is a former champion fighter who now works for Rothstein. He pitches him the idea of working with the Sox to throw the series, but Rothstein turns it down and doesn't tell him he's going to work with Sullivan. Rothstein has treated Abe like a throw away so, Abe decides to go in business with Burns and Billy and now there are two separate people attempting to fix the Series. Abe begins to collect bets that are owed to Rothstein and uses his money to fund his bets against the Sox, and doesn't come through with paying the players what he guaranteed them up front. When the trial shakes out he skips town.
Hugh Fullerton
Fullerton is a sports reporter that follows the White Sox. When there is word that the team could be fixing the series, he and Ring Lardner decide to investigate the team. After the Series ends Fullerton writes a series of articles exposing the Sox which causes a full investigation and the eventual trial that the Sox are found not guilty of conspiracy. But, in the end a special investigator is assigned to determine what to do with the team, and it's decided that all of the players will be suspended for life.
Ring Lardner
Lardner works with Fullerton as a reporter and believes that the team is fixing the series. He's far more overt that Fullerton, even singing a song about cheating and gambling to the Sox on their train ride to Cincinnati. Though he does this, he cautions Fullerton that if he crucifies the Sox for fixing the Series the town may hate him.
