NEW YORK -- President Donald Trump's support of Pete Rose was among the factors weighed by Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred when he decided last month that permanent bans by the sport ended with death, which allows the career hits leader to be considered for the Hall of Fame.
Manfred announced the new interpretation May 13, and that decision allows Rose and "Shoeless" Joe Jackson to be considered for a Hall committee vote in December 2027.
"The president was one of a number of voices that was supportive of the idea that this was the right decision," Manfred said Wednesday during a news conference at an owners meeting. "Obviously, I have respect for the office, and the advice that he gave I paid attention to, but I had a lot of other people that were weighing in on the topic, as well."
Rose and then-commissioner A. Bartlett Giamatti agreed to a permanent ban in August 1989 after an investigation commissioned by MLB concluded that Rose repeatedly bet on the Reds as a player and manager for the team from 1985 to 1987, a violation of a long-standing MLB rule.
The Hall of Fame in 1991 decided people on the permanently banned list were ineligible for consideration.
Rose, a Cincinnati native who became baseball's Hit King, died in October 2024. Before his death, Rose applied multiple times for reinstatement, but Manfred rejected them.
The 1960 Western Hills High School alum signed a professional contract with the Reds after graduation. Once he made it to the big leagues, Rose immediately made an impact for Cincinnati, batting .273 and winning National League Rookie of the Year.
A key part of the Big Red Machine and "The Great Eight," Rose was National League MVP and World Series MVP while helping lead Cincinnati to two World Series titles.
Rose then signed with the Phillies in 1979. At the time of the signing, he was the highest-paid athlete in team sports. One year later, he won his third World Series title. He was in Philadelphia until the 1984 season when he was granted a release and signed a one-year contract with the Montreal Expos. In August 1984, he was traded back to Cincinnati.
Rose immediately became a player-manager when he returned to Cincinnati. While in his second stint with the Reds, Rose became the all-time hit leader — breaking Ty Cobb's record — with his 4,192nd hit in 1985. He would end his career with a total of 4,256 hits, 3,215 singles and 3,562 games played.
During his playing career, Rose was also a 17-time All-Star and received two Gold Glove Awards. His No. 14 is retired in Cincinnati, and he is in the Reds Hall of Fame.
After retiring as a player in 1986, Rose stayed with the Reds as a manager. He was fired in 1989, the year Rose was banned from baseball after accusations that he gambled on baseball games while he played and managed the Reds. Rose eventually admitted in his autobiography that he did bet on baseball games, including Cincinnati's, while with the Reds. He claims he never bet against the team.
Will Pete be voted into the Hall? Watch the video below for the latest on the effort.
