Following his Jan. 6 pardons, Donald Trump has turned his consideration to a late disgraced MLB star.
On Friday, Trump introduced a posthumous pardon for Pete Rose, who died at age 83 in September after he was banned from by the league and the Baseball Hall of Fame after he was accused in 1989 of betting on the Cincinnati Reds throughout his time as a participant and group supervisor.
“Major League Baseball didn’t have the courage or decency to put the late, great, Pete Rose, also known as ‘Charlie Hustle,’ into the Baseball Hall of fame,” he wrote on Truth Social. “Now he is dead, will never experience the thrill of being selected, even though he was a FAR BETTER PLAYER than most of those who made it, and can only be named posthumously. WHAT A SHAME!”
Trump added, “Anyway, over the next few weeks I will be signing a complete PARDON of Pete Rose, who shouldn’t have been gambling on baseball, but only bet on HIS TEAM WINNING. He never betted against himself, or the other team. He had the most hits, by far, in baseball history, and won more games than anyone in sports history. Baseball, which is dying all over the place, should get off its fat, lazy ass, and elect Pete Rose, even though far too late, into the Baseball Hall of Fame!”
Rose’s iconic profession was tainted endlessly by a playing scandal when he was managing the Reds within the late Nineteen Eighties. Then-MLB Commissioner Peter Uberroth and NL President Bart Giamatti questioned him about stories that Rose wager on baseball video games. Initially, he admitted to playing on different sports activities however denied betting on baseball.
Pete Rose of the Cincinnati Reds makes a trademark headfirst slide in a 1978 sport
Everett Collection
Giamatti later was named MLB commissioner and pressed the investigation. In 1987, the Dowd Report — named for legal professional John Down, who led the probe — concluded that Rose had wager on greater than 50 Reds video games in 1987 and others through the prior two seasons. Despite persevering with to disclaim the allegations, Rose agreed to be banished to MLB’s ineligible checklist. Despite pleas from followers, fellow gamers and others, he by no means was reinstated, leaving him out of the Baseball Hall of Fame regardless of being one of many sport’s all-time best hitters.
In 2020, Trump stumped publicly for Rose’s reinstatement and consideration for the Hall of Fame. “He gambled, but only on his own team winning, and paid a decades long price,” Trump posted on Twitter. “GET PETE ROSE INTO THE BASEBALL HALL OF FAME. It’s Time!”