Should Bud Selig lift the ‘lifetime ban’ on Pete Rose?

It’s been 20 years since Pete Rose was given a lifetime ban from the sport of baseball which also includes any possibility for him to become inducted in the Hall of Fame.

Hasn’t he suffered enough? Should Commissioner Bud Selig lift the ban which would give him the opportunity to be voted into the Hall? At this point, the 65 living members on the Veteran’s Committee would be responsible for his fate of whether or not he would be allowed into the MLB Hall of Fame even if the ban is lifted.

Here’s the thing…I can’t argue too much about the ban punishment that was enforced for gambling on baseball as a manager.

Let’s be real here though…Pete Rose was arguably the greatest hitsman and hard-nosed baseball player within the last 50 years. It’s no fluke why he earned the nickname Charlie Hustle. Oh yea it’s true and the stats don’t lie.

These are some significant numbers: .303 batting average, 4,256 hits, 2165 runs scored, 746 doubles, and 135 triples over a 24-year career. Did I mention 17-time All-Star, 3x World Series Champion, 1x NL MVP, among numerous other accomplishments?

Okay, his performance on the field to get the go-ahead into the Hall was never in question. Are we also measuring character and off the field behavior?

To answer that quickly and painlessly, his questionable behavior or gambling antics didn’t start until he became a manager…as far as we know. So why has his ‘playing days’ been affected by what was done during his managing days? Since we know that a person can enter the MLB Hall of Fame as either a player or manager, I believe he should have been punished for whatever role he possessed at the time the deed occurred.

Just like the infamous ‘Chicago Black-Sox’ was barred from baseball for what they did on the field.

Anyways, what’s done is done and hopefully Commissioner Bud Selig has a change of heart and perspective on this issue. I hope he sees what Rose did on the field and gives the ‘greatest hitsman ever’ the second opportunity to get what he deserves…and that in my opinion is his name in Cooperstown along with the other greats that played this game. Only time will tell…