Pete Rose was a legend of the Cincinnati Reds, the MLB’s all-time leader in hits, at-bats, and other metrics. He was permanently banned from baseball after betting on his own team’s games while managing the Reds.
- Died: September 30, 2024 (Who else died on September 30?)
- Details of death: Died of hypertensive and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease at his home in Las Vegas at the age of 83.
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Pete Rose’s legacy
The pinnacle of Rose’s career was a hit record that hasn’t been surpassed almost 40 years after he set it. But when his professional road began in 1963, few would have predicted he’d reach such heights. Small for his age and held back a year in high school, Rose played baseball and football as he grew up in Cincinnati. As a senior, he also played on a local amateur team, yet didn’t make the radar of any major league teams. However, Rose was lucky enough to have an uncle who was a scout for the Reds, and he encouraged the team to take a chance on his nephew. Their decision to sign him quickly paid off as Rose was named National League Rookie of the Year.
By 1965, he was an All-Star, his first of 17 seasons with that distinction. He played for the Reds through 1978, winning back-to-back World Series with the team in 1975 and 1976. As Rose’s profile rose in the baseball world, he became one of the sport’s true characters. Known for his all-out, hard-charging style of play, he delighted fans with his headfirst slides into bases and his unabashed love for the game. He was famously known for declaring “I’d walk through hell in a gasoline suit to play baseball.” Rose played with enthusiasm, and he did it well, achieving a three-home-run game in April 1978 and a 44-game hitting streak later that season. Given the nickname “Charlie Hustle” as a rookie by opponent Whitey Ford (1928–2020), Rose embraced it as a compliment – and the perfect description for his approach to the game.
In 1979, the Phillies wooed Rose with a record-breaking contract, and he signed with the Philadelphia team as a free agent. He played four seasons with the Phillies, helping them to their first – and his third – World Series victory in 1980. After his four-year, $3.2 million contract with the Phillies ended, Rose played for the Montreal Expos for a single season before returning home to the Reds. There, he worked as player-manager for the last illustrious seasons of his career.
One of those seasons was 1985, when baseball fans held their breath as Rose chased Ty Cobb’s all-time record of 4,191 hits. He broke the record on September 11, 1985, and by the time he retired as a player in 1986, he had 4,256 hits. In addition to being baseball’s all-time hits leader, Rose also leads the league in games played with 3,562, at-bats with 14,053, singles with 3,215, and outs with 10,328.
After stepping away from playing, Rose remained with the Reds as manager. He seemed poised for a long career mentoring players, but it fell apart just three years later. In 1989, Rose was accused of gambling on Reds games. This violated a foundational rule of the sport, established after the 1919 Black Sox scandal. Though Rose denied breaking the rule, the evidence against him was strong enough that he was given a lifetime suspension from baseball, which included a ban from being inducted into the Hall of Fame.
The ban was, and remains, controversial. While some believe it was absolutely just – Rose broke the rules, so he suffers the penalty – others insist that Major League Baseball should have forgiven him long ago. His outstanding record, they say, should qualify him for the Hall of Fame regardless of his past transgressions. But as of his death, the league still refused to reinstate him. The Reds inducted him into their Hall of Fame in 2016 and retired his No. 14 jersey.
Later, in his 2004 autobiography, “My Prison Without Bars,” Rose admitted to betting on Reds games, though he said he never bet against the team. Later evidence showed that he had bet on Reds games while he was still a player-manager, not just during his managerial years.
In 1990 and early 1991, Rose spent five months in prison for tax evasion. In later years, he was associated with WWE, appearing as a guest announcer at several WrestleMania events and engaging in impromptu bouts with wrestler Kane. He also briefly managed an independent baseball team and worked as a color commentator for Fox Sports.
Notable quote
“I was always a competitive guy. I said, ‘Well, I like these guys. They’re like my sons, so let me bet on them.’ I shouldn’t have did it. But I did it, and it’s history, and there’s nothing you can do about it to change it.” — from a 2014 interview for ESPN
Tributes to Pete Rose
Full obituary: The Cincinnati Enquirer
