Pete Rose’s bid for MLB reinstatement has once again failed.
Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred announced Monday that the league will not reinstate the all-time hits leader as the nearly three-decade long ban from the game carries on.
Rose has since been suspended from the MLB and barred from Hall of Fame consideration after it was determined back in 1989 that he bet on baseball. He first applied for reinstatement in 1997 with then commissioner Bud Selig who basically ignored his request.
Hope on a Rose/MLB reconciliation seemed to be gaining momentum this past year though with a new commissioner in place and baseball appearing to be more open to Rose’s involvement with today’s game. The former Reds great certainly wasn’t forgotten by the League during the All-Star festivities in Cincinnati this past summer.
So why did Manfred give the axe to a Rose return to the MLB? Well in typical Pete Rose fashion he admitted he continues to bet on sports.
“During our meeting, Mr. Rose told me that he has continued to bet on horse racing, and on professional sports, including baseball,” Manfred said. “Those bets may have been permitted by law in the jurisdictions in which they were placed, but this fact does not mean that the bets would be permissible if made by a player or manager subject to Rule 21.” (via theScore)
You know… I don’t advocate anyone should lie but we’re talking about baseball here which in the grand scheme of things isn’t important. At all. So you really can’t help but give yourself a good face palm at Rose’s recent revelations when it comes to gambling. ANYONE else and this is something the commissioner could probably look past… Not Pete Rose though and it’s certainly understandable.