We expected our readers to come out in support of Pickens County native “Shoeless” Joe Jackson and his continuing quest to join the Baseball Hall of Fame. We really didn’t anticipate how overwhelming, or how passionate, that support would be.

Just over 88 percent of those voting in last week’s Progress Poll said that yes, Joe Jackson should be enshrined in the Hall of Fame. Of course, in order for that to happen, Commissioner Bud Selig would have to lift Jackson’s lifetime ban from the sport.

In case you have never heard the story, let’s go over it one more time.

In 1919, members of the Chicago White Sox conspired with gamblers to throw the 1919 World Series. “Shoeless” Joe Jackson, who was born in Pickens County, was on the team. Reports say that while Jackson originally accepted money from the group, he eventually returned the money once he figured out what they were asking him to do.

The White Sox did lose the series, but Jackson had the highest batting average of any player in the series. He did not make a fielding error and hit the series’ only home run.

In other words, if he was trying to throw the game, he did a terrible job.

Once allegations came out about the White Sox players, the scandal swept across the nation. Criminal charges were filed, but Jackson and his teammates were found not guilty.

Kennesaw “Mountain” Landis, the new baseball commissioner, decided that the possibility that a game’s results could be fixed was too great of a risk for the future of baseball. So he banned eight members of the White Sox from baseball for life.

The ban was particularly tough for Jackson, who loved the sport of baseball. Unlike with other sports, Major League Baseball actually owns the sport of baseball. Therefore, the ban extended to the minor leagues, textile leagues, etc.

Jackson would still slip into a team’s lineup from time to time after the ban. He would suit up for a minor league or textile league team and play under an assumed name. Fans would give a knowing wink, happy just to have the opportunity to see one of the game’s all-time greats perform live.

Jackson and his wife Kate operated a liquor store in Greenville, and he spent his spare time working with young players in Greenville and Pickens counties.

Shoeless Joe’s “lifetime ban” lasted longer than that. He passed away in 1952, yet the ban still stands.

“First of all, we have no proof that Shoeless Joe ever did anything wrong,” one voter wrote. “Secondly, his contributions to the game outweigh any poor decision he was duped into by those city slickers.”

Another reader suggested that Jackson’s reputation as an illiterate country rube has cost him.

“If Joe Jackson was a slick, New York City type player, they would have dropped this so-called ban after five years,” the voter wrote. “But because they think so little of people from the South, they refuse to admit they were wrong about Shoeless Joe.”

Another voter noted that Jackson’s favorite bat — named “Black Betsy” — is on display at the Hall of Fame.

“It’s like they’re saying, ‘We want to benefit from your legend, but we don’t want you to be a part of our Hall of Fame,’” the voter wrote. “It’s a slap in the face, if you ask me.”

The less than 12 percent who voted that Jackson should remain banned from the Hall of Fame were much less vocal.

“He broke the rules, so he has to pay,” was the only written comment.