Every Rose Has Its Thorn

Pete Rose committed the cardinal sin of baseball by betting on games, including on his own team, both as a player and a manager. As a result, he was banished from baseball for life in 1989 by then Commissioner A Bartlett Giamatti. Despite several appeals by Rose, the ban is still in effect today, with Rose recently turning 81 a just over a week ago.

Rose recently crawled out of the woodwork to say that if he were playing in the game today and bet on his team, no one would care. These comments were made in response to professional sports embracing the legalization of sports betting to cash in on the profits. But the fact remains, it is still illegal for a Major League Baseball player to bet on ANY game. 

In every clubhouse, in both the Major and Minor Leagues, there is a list of league rules on the wall and one of them clearly states that all players are prohibited from betting on baseball. If you are a baseball savant, like Rose, you are clearly familiar with the 1919 Black Sox Scandal in which the Chicago White Sox threw the World Series against the Cincinnati Reds (coincidentally the team Rose was on when his gambling scandal broke). You also know that the eight men who threw the series were banned from the game for life. Rose knew the rule and literally saw the writing on the wall. 

So no, Pete, people WOULD care because it was illegal then and it’s illegal now.