How come Alex Rodriguez is still playing baseball and Pete Rose is banned for life? For life sounds like a long time, right? I mean, Rose still holds the record of the all time Major League Baseball leader in hits with 4,256 although he only played in 3,562 games. Pete Rose won three World Series rings and three batting titles.
Add to that one Most Valuable Player Award and two Golden Gloves. He also won the rookie of the year in 1963 with the Cincinnati Reds, oh yeah, and let’s not forget 17 All-Star appearances at an amazing 5 different positions! Rose even had a go at pitching in some scrimmage games and was clocked at close to 100 mph on his fastball.
But, in 1989, while Rose was in a managerial role with those same Cincinnati Reds, where Pete Rose stayed throughout his MLB career. Pete was found guilty of wagering on baseball games, some of which involved the Reds. Once again we have our good buddies over at Sports Illustrated for opening thatan of worms.
Incoming MLB Commissioner Bart Giamatti, who replaced Peter Ueberroth, pursueded the issue even though his predesessor had let the case drop. The result was that Pete Rose, one of the most identifable figures in comtempory sports, was banned from having anything to do baseball for life… for life? Baseball fans who followed Rose’s career knew him to be one of the most iconic of baseball players. He obviously loved the game and played his heart out whenever he took the field.
To add insult to injury, the Baseball Writers Association of America decided that Pete Rose would forevermore be permanently ineligible for induction into the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame. After all that Rose had accomplished, surely this was the cruelest blow of them all.
These days Pete Rose is often interviewed by the press about what’s happening in baseball. He recently appeared on a Pittsburgh radio show (93.7) called The Fan and was asked his opinion on the mess that Alex Rodriguez has made of his once stellar career.
Rose said, “You have to understand, I don’t call these guys to do shows, they call me. And of course with all this steroid talk and the 12 guys being suspended and A-Rod appealing, they want my input because I’m suspended for life. Hey, everything is a different case. I made mistakes. I can’t whine about it. I’m the one that messed up and I’m paying the consequences. However, if I am given a second chance, I won’t need a third chance. And to be honest, I picked the wrong vice.”
