MLB lifts ban on Pete Rose, other dead players

Pete Rose was banned in 1989 after he was caught betting on his team, the Cincinnati Reds

(Image credit: Bettmann / Getty Images)

What happened

Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred Tuesday reinstated disgraced baseball great Pete Rose and other deceased players on MLB's permanently ineligible list. Manfred's decision, announced in a letter to the Rose family's lawyer, opened the door for Rose and 16 other dead people banned for gambling and other scandals to be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Who said what

Rose, who died last September, agreed to a permanent ban in 1989 after he was caught betting on his team, the Cincinnati Reds, as a player and as manager. Other players now eligible for posthumous induction include Shoeless Joe Jackson and his seven Chicago Black Sox teammates banned for throwing the 1919 World Series.

"In my view, once an individual has passed away, the purpose of Rule 21" — which prohibits players and team staff from betting on any game in which they are directly involved — "has been served," Manfred wrote. Deceased players no longer "represent a threat to the integrity of the game." Marcus Giamatti, the son of the late MLB commissioner who banned Rose, disagreed. Manfred's decision "makes this a very dark day for baseball, the country and the fans," he said.

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What next?

"Convincing Manfred to lift the ban on Rose may turn out to be the easy part" for his supporters, The Wall Street Journal said. Rose's stats are "unimpeachable," but he "committed one of baseball's gravest sins" and could "still face long odds" when the Hall of Fame's "Classic Era Committee" next votes in late 2027.

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.