Monday afternoon, commissioner Rob Manfred announced he has rejected Pete Rose's latest application for reinstatement. One of the reasons given was Rose's admission that he still gambles today on horses and other sports, including baseball.
On Tuesday, Rose held a press conference outside his restaurant, the Pete Rose Sports Bar & Grill in Las Vegas, to discuss the rejection, his future and other things.
"Obviously disappointed. No question about that," said Rose when asked about his reaction to the rejection. "I've been saying this for many many years now. I'm not going to sit here on Las Vegas Boulevard and complain about something because I'm the one who screwed up. I made the mistake."
Throughout the press conference, Rose and his attorney Mark Rosenbaum made it pretty clear they understand Rose is very unlikely to be allowed back into baseball. They instead seem to be focused on getting Rose into the Hall of Fame, which is a separate entity from MLB.
In fact, Manfred went out of his way to explain it is not his job to determine Hall of Fame eligibility. He is responsible for MLB and MLB alone. The Hall of Fame is separate. However, players on the league's permanently ineligible list have been ineligible for the Hall of Fame since 1991. That, conveniently, was the year before Rose was to appear on the ballot the first time.
"It is the Hall of Fame, not the Hall of Saints," said Rosenbaum Tuesday. "The Hall of Fame by design represents performance on the field. Pete played the game exactly as it was intended to be played. He has been punished and punished severely."
"He is a changed man, he is a repented man," Rosenbaum continued. "His life is under control ... (Rose) wants to be on the same side with baseball. (The Hall of Fame) is what history demands ... We are a nation of second chances."
Hall of Fame president Jeff Idelson told MLB Network during a television interview Tuesday he doesn't foresee the Hall of Fame changing the rule for ineligible players anytime soon, though he didn't rule it out completely at some point in the future. It's just not a top priority.
"My whole life has been a Hall of Fame life," said Rose Tuesday. "All I look forward to being someday is friends with baseball."
