Pete Rose's reinstatement has baseball fans in uproar: 'What a shame they waited until now'

Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred removed Pete Rose, "Shoeless" Joe Jackson and other deceased players from the league’s permanently ineligible list Tuesday.

As a result, Rose, MLB's all-time hits leader; Jackson; and others are eligible for election to the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Rose and Jackson were infamous figures in MLB history, their legacies tarnished by gambling on the game.

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Cincinnati Reds Hall of Famer Pete Rose gives a thumbs up to fans as he is introduced during a pregame ceremony for the unveiling of his bronze statue at Great American Ball Park in downtown Cincinnati June 17, 2017. (Imagn)

MLB found Rose gambled on his Cincinnati Reds as both a player and manager, although he insisted he never bet on his team to lose. Rose denied the accusations until 2004. He sought reinstatement several times but was never welcomed back by MLB before his death in September 2024. 

Rose predicted just 10 days before his death that he wouldn’t make the Baseball Hall of Fame until after he died, if at all. 

The news about Rose shocked the baseball world, and fans immediately began lobbying for Rose's induction into the Hall of Fame.

MLB REMOVES PETE ROSE, OTHER BANNED PLAYERS FROM PERMANENTLY INELIGIBLE LIST

Pete Rose of the Cincinnati Reds at bat against the Atlanta Braves in Atlanta Aug. 2, 1978. (AP Photo, File)

Baseball fans have been debating Rose’s eligibility for the Hall of Fame for years. 

Former MLB pitcher John Rocker posted, "PETE ROSE DESERVED TO SEE HIS NAME IN THE HALL OF FAME."

However, not everyone shares the same view, including veteran sports host Chris Rose.

"Pete Rose didn’t give Pete Rose a shot to get into the Baseball Hall of Fame," Chris Rose explained in his reaction video posted on social media. "We’re always looking to point the finger at somebody else as to why we can’t do this or we weren’t given that shot. My guess is that Pete Rose would’ve had ample opportunity to do this if he would’ve looked himself in the mirror and said, ‘You have to clean up your act,’ which he never did. 

"For 15 years after A. Bartlett Giamatti, the commissioner at the time, said, "Pete, you’re out,’ he never admitted to betting on baseball. You know when he finally did? When he could turn a quick buck, when he could turn out a book. And then he started saying, ‘Yeah, I did bet on baseball, but I only I bet on my team to win when I was managing them.’"

Manfred wrote about his decision in a letter to attorney Jeffrey M. Lenkov. 

FILE - Former Philadelphia Phillies player Pete Rose tips his hat to fans during an alumni day, Aug. 7, 2022, in Philadelphia.  (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File)

"Obviously, a person no longer with us cannot represent a threat to the integrity of the game," Manfred wrote in the letter obtained by ESPN. "Moreover, it is hard to conceive of a penalty that has more deterrent effect than one that lasts a lifetime with no reprieve. Therefore, I have concluded that permanent ineligibility ends upon the passing of the disciplined individual, and Mr. Rose will be removed from the permanently ineligible list."

President Donald Trump, who met with Manfred last month, announced in March he would pardon Rose, who served five months in prison in 1990. In 2017, Rose was also accused of statutory rape from an alleged encounter decades earlier. 

"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. 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 posted.

Cincinnati Reds Hall of Famer Pete Rose adjusts his cap as he takes the microphone during a pregame ceremony for the unveiling of his bronze statue at Great American Ball Park in downtown Cincinnati June 17, 2017. (Imagn)

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While Rose has a good shot to make it into the Hall, Jackson’s chances are slim to none. It is widely assumed he took part in the 1919 Black Sox scandal, in which seven others were banned from the game for fixing the World Series that year. 

As a result of Manfred’s decision, 17 deceased players have been removed from MLB's permanently ineligible list. 

Fox News’ Ryan Morik contributed to this report.

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