Roses are red, some readers are blue....
From: Rashid Othman
(Pete Rose) broke the rules and he has to pay the price for it. No one held a gun to his head and made him agree to a lifetime ban from baseball. He should never be allowed in the Hall of Fame. What does that tell our children, if you are a superstar in sports, you can do anything you want and there will be no lasting repercussions?
At the very least, it tells our parents to make sure to steer our children away from using all but a precious few sports heroes as role models.
From: Bud Aydlett (Rose fan forever!)
Pete Rose did more for Cincinnati baseball than all of the other Big Red Machine players combined. I drove from Batesville, Ind., to see the Reds play several times and I wanted autographs for my boys. Pete was on the pre-game radio show selling Reds baseball. At Riverfront Stadium, Pete was the ONLY Reds player courteous enough to give free autographs over and over. (Johnny) Bench, (Tony) Perez, Davey (Concepcion) and all of the other prima donnas had no time for the fans. He was Mr. Baseball for true Cincinnati fans and we will never forget that. He deserves forgiveness, fair treatment in the press and induction into the Hall of Fame now. God bless Pete Rose.
That's not what this next guy says....
From: P Anderson
I'm 15 years old getting an autograph for my 9-year-old brother from Pete (in Clearwater, Fla.) when he signs the ball and says, "You should have to pay for this." Never will forget that remark. Cheating, hookers, gambling and lying should be the name of his book. It's a sick world when his book sells and O.J. gets cheered by fans everywhere. Great -- NFL playoffs, Hall of Fame inductees, and all I can see is his FAT face everywhere I turn!
I'm so depressed after reading your note. Why don't you go out for ice cream and make yourself feel better? It doesn't have to be a sick world.
From: Joe Diaz
Hell, yes, he belongs in the Hall of Fame. My God, if they were to go back and dig into the lives of all the players who are in the Hall, we wouldn't have Mickey (Mantle), Whitey (Ford), Babe (Ruth), Ty (Cobb), and many other names that are in there. So the guy bet on the game that made him famous. Geez, let up already.
People had, until Rose turned author again.
From: Shane Bush
It is so disturbing that baseball and its fans are considering allowing this cheat to come back to the game. To consider this action before remembering one name, Shoeless Joe Jackson ... he was never guilty of anything but lying to a gambler. He obviously never bet on the game but yet nearly 90 years later, he is not even being considered to be allowed in the Hall or have his name cleared?
Yeah, but Rose's crime is gambling on baseball, not conspiring to fix games. Jackson's best argument is that he wasn't intelligent enough to have participated in a plot to fix the 1919 World Series. As bad as betting on games is, conspiring to throw them is even worse.
From: David Gasman
Dear Scott,
I've always enjoyed your well-written columns. But this time I have to respond. Getting into the Hall of Fame is an honor, not a right. Nothing can take Pete's great career away from him; he'll always have that. He'll already always be remembered as a great player. But he bet on baseball, then he lied about it, then he lied about lying. He knew the rules. That's why he lied. But Scott, Pete Rose must not be allowed into the Hall. Gambling is a very specific crime, which, as you pointed out, threatens the foundation of baseball; that it is a sport, where anyone can win if they play better. Gambling destroys the integrity of the game, it destroys its very nature. You can't guarantee fair play in a game if guys are betting on and profiting from the outcome. That's why it's different than alcohol or drugs.
I agree with everything you've said, David. But I still will vote for Rose as a player if he is ever put on the Hall ballot as a player ... unless it is proved that he gambled as a player in addition to as a manager. If that proof comes through, then he should never be in the Hall.
From: David Sizemore
Scott, thanks for your article. I agree that Pete should be and should have been in the Baseball Hall of Fame for his accomplishments on the field. I think it is hypocritical that MLB gives druggies and steroids users chance after chance and treat Pete like crap. He has to earn a living like anyone else, and if MLB hadn't turned their backs on him, maybe he wouldn't have been so bad. I believe that this issue has been drawn out so long simply because the former commissioners didn't like Pete and his audacity, an endearing trait on the field. He should have been treated better and gotten help. He was the victim of a witch hunt. They have tried to make him as repulsive as O.J., but Pete didn't murder anyone.
Hold on ... in the baseball world, gambling is -- and should be -- a far more heinous act than "druggies and steroids users." I'm not condoning the latter, but if the outcome of the games isn't honest, then there is no sport.
From: Bob
I think your article is ludicrous and you sir, are an ass.
Always nice to hear from the fan club.
From: Eric Umstead
Honesty is the best policy. Why didn't Rose admit from the outset that he had bet on baseball? He knew that if he did, he probably would NOT be allowed into the Hall of Fame. Having been a reporter, if you were a U.S. senator and had a sexual encounter with your secretary, and if I were to pick up some suspicions and investigate you, it would be to YOUR ADVANTAGE to admit that "Yes, I had an affair with my secretary." Why? Because the American public is quick to forget instances like that. But if you continuously lie and are finally caught, your name tends to remain in people's minds as being a sleazebag.
If I'm a U.S. senator in this story, can I be Bluto Blutarsky, please?
From: Tom Bratz
So if O.J. admits he killed them, I guess they should give back the money he lost in the civil suit. (Rose) knew it was the most important rule in baseball, but he bet on it anyway, and now you want to let him in the Hall of Fame just because he finally admitted he's been lying for the past 14 years?
This just proves he's scum and belongs in the Hall of Shame. The only reason he's finally telling the truth are that he wants to make money on his book and he thinks this will get him in the Hall of Fame. I guess if all the guys on death row admit their guilt, you'll say we should let them out of prison too?
Now Rose is a murderer?
From: Martin Vymazal
Hi Scott, I wanted to let you know I enjoyed your Dec. 3 snippet about Bob Seger and the new CD. In one short paragraph you mention five really great individuals.
I hope your efforts to lobby Seger to release Can't Hit the Corners No More are successful. I understand that Bob has a bunch of great unreleased tunes "up in the attic."
I'm just happy our favorite ramblin', gamblin' man apparently has stepped out of semi-retirement.
From: Jeff Upton
Finally a smart baseball man! Please talk to my cronies who think that every HOF shortstop was like A-Rod in their prime; second basemen must have been like (Roberto) Alomar and every starting pitcher must have dominated like "The Rocket." You must judge a player's contributions during the time he played. That's why Ryno (Ryne Sandberg) and (Alan) Trammell belong, as well as (Bruce) Sutter and Goose (Gossage).
If any of your cronies look like Diane Keaton in Something's Gotta Give, I'll be happy to speak with them.
From: Craig Tanisawa
If there's one thing I'm adamant on, it's my stance on the baseball Hall of Fame. Your article, along with countless others on the subject, made me want to puke. Scott, this is the Hall of Fame, not the "Hall of Pretty Good," not the "Hall of Above Average," not even the "Hall of All-Stars." This is the Hall of Immortals -- players who were almost bigger than the game. Ruth, Mays, Mantle, Gehrig, Cobb ... Bruce Sutter and Jack Morris!??!?!!? Are you kidding me?
Hey, the guy before you said "Finally, a smart baseball man!" I like him better.
From: David McCann
I have written to complain about your articles. This time I wouldn't change a single word. I am shocked!
Like my mother always said, it helps to keep an open mind.
From: Lt. Col. Bill Buechel
Scott, you make perfect sense. If Ozzie (Smith) is a HOFer, so is Trammell.
Right on target regarding (Bert) Blyleven ... 60 shutouts, 287 wins, c'mon. Was Phil Niekro or Don Sutton better? Nope!
Not sure I agree with Morris ... to me, same category as (Don) Mattingly and (Steve) Garvey.
Ryno should be a lock ... best at his position for more than a decade. As good at second base as Ozzie was at shortstop, and plus he could hit.
Agree on Eck, Sutter, and Gossage. Also agree (Lee) Smith should wait.
(Paul) Molitor should be a first ballot guy all the way.
Props for your perceptiveness.
After dealing with the guy before you, Lt., I'm just happy when my picks don't make someone want to wretch.
From: Jon Usher, southern Maine
Beautiful piece on the HOF balloting dilemma. I think I agreed with you on every single point. Thanks for a nice read.
Always nice to hear from Maine.
From: Chris Howard
I totally disagree with your Dale Murphy theory. Two MVPs, 398 homers (he really needed to get two more), several All Star appearances, etc. etc. This clean-cut role model came to play every day. He had an arm well before steroids had a place in baseball. Nothing disappoints me more than to see him get so few votes year after year. I truly believe now that politics has found its way into baseball HOF voting. Maybe Dale Murphy is just too good for the HOF. He is definitely in my HOF. When I point out to my 2-year-old son one day who some of the best all-around players were, Dale Murphy will be at the top of my list.
You make good points, but Murphy just wasn't dominant for long enough.
From: Troy
Concepcion's offensive numbers were too puny, but boy, Ozzie Smith sure was an offensive powerhouse.
Ozzie should be in, but it shouldn't have been the slam-dunk that the voters turned it into. Apparently, it never hurts to do acrobatics on the field.
From: Jerry
I think it is a travesty that Ken Boyer never made it to the Hall. What a great player. Your thoughts?
He's certainly deserving. Travesty? I'm not sure about that. Historically, it's not easy to make the Hall as a third baseman -- only nine are enshrined in Cooperstown. Boyer's .287 lifetime average and 282 homers stand up well, no question.
From: Craig Fenn
About Jim Rice and what kind of person he is, this story might give you a little insight. This is a true story that you can verify by an article published in the Hartford Courant a number of years ago. My ex-wife called her father living in Florida about her son having a problem with hitting high school pitching. Her father suggested she call the Red Sox for advice. She called the Red Sox training facility in Fort Myers and somehow got transferred to Rice, who was about to begin his first year as batting coach. She explained the concern and asked him if he could help. Now my ex-wife knew nothing about Rice or the Sox before this conversation and Rice asked her how she thought he could help. She replied "Well, I heard you were pretty good."
Anyway, Rice agreed to help for the price of a Dunkin Donuts coffee everyday, and he met my ex and her son for a week at 5 a.m. in the batting cages to help.
Now that's a pretty cool story. Thanks for passing it along.
