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Having been a lifelong fan of the Cincinnati Reds,
perhaps I'm in the minority. However, I have a
question: is it just me, or has former baseball great
Pete Rose become the most egregious felon this side of
Usama?
You can, perhaps rightfully, attribute and,
therefore, dismiss my subsequent rant here as tripe
coming from a Reds' fan. Fine. And maybe my view is
being colored by my allegiance to that minor league
squad just north of the Ohio River.
But it seems to me that a lot of sports writers and
radio hosts just don't like Pete Rose. An example: Woody
Paige, baseball writer for the Denver Post, was on one
of the talking-head shows recently. He demonized Rose
and scrutinized him for the various and sundry hair
styles he's had over the past few years.
I recall the day back in 1989 when Rose announced he
was stepping down as Cincinnati manager because of
gambling allegations and Major League Baseball's
lifetime ban. Columnists back then called him pathetic
as he stood at the lecturn, "even with that stupid
haircut."
Sounds pretty personal to me, folks.
So who is this guy, Pete Rose? Is he the dude that
flew the jets into the World Trade Center? No.
Is he the guy who kidnapped the Lindbergh baby, Patty
Hearst AND Elizabeth Smart? No.
Was he developing weapons of mass destruction from
the clubhouse at Riverfront Stadium? No.
Pete Rose was perhaps the best all-around player to
ever play the game of baseball. These are the facts and
they are indisputable: Rose has more hits than anyone
who played the game of baseball (4,256); he batted .303
lifetime; He was seven-time National League batting
champ; NL most-valuable player in 1973; had 200 hits or
more in a season 10 times; scored 100 runs or more in a
season 10 times; he scored 2,165 runs, drove home 1,314
runs and cracked 160 home runs.
Add to that the fact that he played in eight NL
playoffs, played in six World Series, played for three
World Series winners and was a 15-time all star at four
different positions. Rose turned many a walk into a
double because he played hard, something lacking in
today's game. He earned the nickname "Charlie Hustle."
He also bet on baseball.
He insamuch admitted that in his book and during a TV
interview, despite a 14-year insistence that he never
did bet on the game.
Oooooooh.
I know that MLB wants to ensure the integrity of the
game. That's why it cracks the whip on drug abusers
(Steve Howe, Darryl Strawberry), spouse abusers (Wil
Cordero), and performance enhancement participants (Mark
McGwire, Barry Bonds and Sammy Sosa).
Sure, and Michael Jackson ought to open up a daycare
center.
True, excessive gambling is a weakness. And those who
take part in excessive gaming have destroyed their
families, sold prized possessions to pay debts, resorted
to criminal activity to earn money and have had limbs
broken and lives lost. And true, gambling on baseball
when you manage a team smells bad (as one of my lawyer
friends says when describing jury verdicts). Ostensibly
one who wagers on athletic contests in which he (or she)
participates can alter the outcome of the game.
That Rose bet on baseball, is bad. But from all
indications, he never bet on his team to lose, only to
win. In the 1960s when Paul Hornung and Alex Karras were
suspended for gambling, I don't think they endured such
scrutiny. Of course there weren't 24-hour TV networks
and talk-radio hosts bored out of their minds as there
are today.
Gambling is bad, but in my opinion, alcohol abuse,
enhancement abuse, drug abuse, spouse abuse is
significantly worse. You'll never get pulled over for
driving while placing a bet. You'll never be frisked by
a cop looking for a concealed bingo card. You won't
catch an STD from sharing a lotto ticket. Rose dropped a
few dead presidents on baseball games. He's admitted it,
now. Why is this personal with so many sports scribes?
Rose's biggest crime is that he's not the brightest bulb
on the tree regarding life's pathway.
Some say that if Rose ever is inducted into
baseball's hall of fame, his plaque should document his
gambling woes. If that's the case, then we should do the
same on the plaques of Ferguson Jenkins (drug arrest in
Canada on a team trip), Ty Cobb (allegedly murdered a
man), Mickey Mantle (alcoholic) and Babe Ruth (you name
it).
It's not like he gave away nuclear secrets to the
Chinese or lied to a grand jury, which has already been
done, by the way.
If MLB commissioner Bud Selig was smart (and that's
subject to conjecture), he'd reinstate Rose, allow his
election to the hall of fame (where he belongs) and hire
him in the front office as a baseball ambassador. Rose
is good for the game. |
