Despite being reinstated into Major League Baseball this week, a top MLB insider claims Pete Rose is still unlikely to ever reach the Hall of Fame.
MLB Commissioner Roger Manfred stunned the baseball world on Tuesday when he reinstated Cincinnati Reds legend Pete Rose and 16 other players who had received lifetime bans. Along with speculation about why the decision came now, most baseball fans wondered if the all-time leader in hits taking his place in the Hall of Fame was now an inevitability. Well, not so fast, according to New York Post MLB insider Jon Heyman.
Related: Insider claims Donald Trump pressured league into reinstating Pete Rose
“While it’s nice that he is now technically and finally eligible to make the Hall. Even 36 years after he was found to have bet on baseball. And even posthumously, I can’t find anyone in the know who thinks he’s actually getting in. Or even has a real shot. Now, after all these many decades, Rose’s chances probably fall somewhere between slim and none. And that’s worse than a shame. It’s not right.”
Jon Heyman
The baseball legend was handed a lifetime ban from the league in 1989. After he was found to have been betting on baseball games while manager of the Reds. For 15 years, he remained steadfast in his claim that he did not bet on games. However, when it became clear his stance could mean the ban would never be lifted and he would not go into the HOF while alive, he owned up to betting on games in 2004.
However, confessing was seen as too little, too late in the eyes of many. It will be interesting to see how the voting plays out when he is added to the ballot in 2028. It is possible that breaking one of the biggest rules in the sport, and his questionable decisions during his life, make some voters block him from joining the other immortals of the game.
Related: Four reasons why Pete Rose doesn’t deserve to be elected to Baseball Hall of Fame
More About:MLB