Pete Rose deserves to be in the Hall of Fame

[D. Bergin]

Since 1920 betting on baseball has been THE cardinal sin in the sport. It was a mantra that was repeated over and over again in every clubhouse on every team from that point on.

It was made perfectly clear for decades........you get caught betting on baseball, you are out............Period.

Other issues of character are irrelevant. If you are concerned about other character flaws, then make a cut and dry rule and stick to it. This was about as cut and dry as it gets.

I'm not sure why Pete Rose should get exempted from this. Sure, he was a fantastic ballplayer with a 1st ballot, near unanimous resume.

However, I have a feeling if a middle of the road star like Don Baylor or Buddy Bell were in the same predicament, there wouldn't be quite the same uproar to get them reinstated to the game.

And, for clarifications sake........the Hall of Fame and the MLB are intertwined. If you are banned from the game for life, you should also be banned from the Hall. Period.

Joe Jackson was never forgiven, then neither should Rose be.

[drc]

Rose's story that the punishment was supposed to be reduced, despite the agreement he signed, is made up and laughable. Rose had legal representation for the agreement and, if the lawyers thought the punishment was only supposed to be a year or two, there's no way they'd let him sign an agreement banning him for life. They'd go down in history as legal boobs-- "Our client was supposed to pay a $100 fine, but argued it down to 20 years in Sing Sing."

This side "gentleman's agreement" with Giamatti is one of Rose's stories.

[Mark]

Even the most outstanding players need to follow the law. As others have said, organized baseball has long established that involvement in gambling is a crime, a mortal, unforgivable sin. Since Rose gambled on the Reds while managing the Reds, he must suffer for the best interests of baseball. Same goes for Shoeless Joe Jackson.