14 Thoughts on Pete Rose
by Bill Staples, Jr. Maybe Pete Rose is cursed. Everything connected to him seems somehow tainted. His birthday? April 14—the anniversary of Abraham Lincoln’s assassination. The day he passed Ty Cobb on the all-time hits list in 1985? September 11th. And now, his Hall of Fame saga is entangled in modern political extremism—which, in a strange way, feels perfectly on brand. As a baseball fan and historian, I’ve recently been asked quite a bit about Pete Rose and the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Friends, colleagues, even casual acquaintances want to know where I stand. I imagine this must be only a hint of what it feels like to be Johnny Bench—constantly fielding questions about Rose. (God bless Johnny Bench.) So, I thought I’d put my thoughts down—for easy sharing and for the record. Here’s my take on "the matter of Mr. Rose." Below are 14 reflections on Pete and the Baseball Hall of Fame. My 14 Thoughts on Pete Rose: Full disclosure: Pete Rose the ballplayer was one of my...
