Eddie Bennett

Eddie Bennett (1903 – January 16, 1935) was an American batboy and mascot for several teams, most notably the New York Yankees during the 1920s and 1930s. At the time of his death, Bennett was considered to be the "most famous mascot in the world".

Early life

Bennett was born in Flatbush, Brooklyn. When Bennett was very young, he received a spine injury suffered in a baby carriage incident. That injury left Bennett with a hunchbacked back and restricted his growth, by the time he was an adult he was considered a dwarf. Bennett's parents died in the 1918 flu epidemic, and Bennett, needing a job, convinced Chicago White Sox outfielder Happy Felsch that he had "mystical powers" that could bring good luck to everyone that uses him. He became Felsch's personal mascot and when Felsch play improved, he moved on to become the White Sox personal mascot in 1919. The club won the pennant that year with Bennett sitting on the bench with the players. During the 1919 World Series, eight members of the White Sox, including Felsch decided to throw the World Series. A scandal erupted which later led those eight players receiving lifetime bans from baseball and Bennett left the team to join his hometown Brooklyn Robins. The Robins won the pennant in 1920, but after participating in the first three World Series games both the second and third being Robins victories, Bennett wasn't invited to join the team at Cleveland. The Robins went on to lose their next four games, and the series to the Indians. He soon left the team citing "lack of trust".