Great American Ballpark, Cincinnati (MLB #24 -- Pete Rose should NOT be in the Hall of Fame)

 

Pete Rose should not be in the Hall of Fame.

I think that Barry Bonds should be, but not Rose.

Both Bonds and Rose had spectacular careers. Bonds finished his career with more home runs than any other player in MLB history, Rose with more base hits. Rose was not as good as Bonds (Bonds was named the Most Valuable Player seven times, Rose only once), but both were great. And Rose is still popular in Cincinnati, more popular than Bonds is in San Francisco -- although he last played nearly 40 years ago, there are far more people wearing jerseys sporting Rose's number than any other player except current star Elly De La Cruz.

Although it’s not official, it’s almost certain that Bonds is not in the Hall of Fame because he took steroids in the later part of his career. Rose is not in the Hall because he was officially banned from MLB after it came out that he had been betting on games while he was a manager.

I’m inclined to give Bonds, and the other steroid users, a break, because while they broke the rules, they broke a rule that was not being enforced – MLB was doing no testing for steroids, even though such tests existed. That meant that those who were not using performance-enhancing drugs were putting themselves at a competitive disadvantage in a very competitive business. Plus, bending the rules to try to win (for example, a pitcher throwing spitballs) has not been considered grounds for exclusion from the Hall.

On the other hand, Rose was breaking rules in a way that might put him in a position where it would be to his advantage to make decisions that were not in his team’s best interests. He said he never bet against the team he was managing, but even that doesn’t make him clean, in my book. That is just one of many unsavory things about Rose (others include time in prison for tax evasion and allegations of statutory rape that he deflected by saying he thought the teenager was at least 16 years old), but it’s the one that’s the clincher for me.

Ironically, one of the best explanations of why what Rose did with betting was wrong, even if he never did bet against his own team, comes from … Pete Rose. In 1978, Rose hit safely in 44 straight games, tying the National League record, and leaving him only 12 games behind the all-time record, the 56-game hitting streak by Joe DiMaggio in 1941.

On Aug. 1, Rose came to bat with two out in the ninth in a runaway game, needing a hit to extend his streak. The count went to two balls and two strikes, and Atlanta relief pitcher Gene Garber threw a changeup. Given the game situation, Rose expected a fastball, so the changeup fooled him, he swung and missed to strike out, end the game, and end the streak.

Afterwards Rose said, "I was a little surprised that in a game that was 16-4, he [Garber] pitched me like it was the seventh game of the World Series. I guess he thought it was Joe DiMaggio up there."

Garber’s reply was along the lines of “I kind of thought he was batting like it was the seventh game of the World Series.”

At the time, I appreciated the witticism of Garber, but soon, I realized I actually agreed with Rose, mostly. Let me explain. In a runaway game like that, it takes a lot of baserunners to get to 12 runs, and since 7 out of 10 balls that are hit into play are outs, the odds against getting enough hits are astronomical (in fact, no one has ever come from that far behind in the 9^th inning to win). However, if a pitcher walks a batter, there’s 0 chance in 10 that he’ll make an out. Hence the best strategy is to throw strikes, and let the other team try to hit the ball where the fielders aren’t. If you throw the pitch that’s easiest to control, a fastball, batters are more likely to get a hit, or even two or three, but you’re more likely to win the game. It’s very different if it’s a one-run game. Then every hit matters. So I sort of agree with Rose, but I think he should have said that Garber was pitching like it was 5-4, not 16-4.

Here’s where this is relevant to Rose’s later predicament. The point of baseball is to win, but in fact, I’d argue that the point is to win the World Series. Arizona Diamondbacks fans fondly remember 2001, when the team won the World Series, and the players’ exploits from that season are almost legendary. The Diamondbacks have had four seasons where they won more regular season games than in 2001, but those teams didn’t win the World Series, and it’s the 2001 team that is celebrated. So winning regular season games isn’t the goal, it’s winning the World Series.

It’s typical to give players days off occasionally, even if that means that your chances of winning that particular game are lower, so that you don’t burn out a psyche or a shoulder, in hopes of winning more games overall, and ultimately winning the World Series. It can be frustrating for fans to have a great relief pitcher who has pitched two or three close games in a row during the regular season, and the manager gives him the next day off (standard procedure), even if it’s another close game. If you are a manager betting to win tonight’s game, you might use a pitcher who was due a day off or who was complaining that his shoulder was sore, and increase your chances of winning today, while also greatly increase the chances that your pitcher will have a season-ending shoulder injury, hence decreasing your chances of winning the World Series. So even if you only bet on your own team, it’s not fair to your team’s fans. We don’t know what Pete bet, but it could be even worse, if he was betting for a certain player to accomplish a certain task (e.g., starting pitcher pitches at least five innings) that the manager has even more control over.

So even though Pete Rose may now eligible for the Hall of Fame (the Commissioner of Baseball said that a lifetime ban ends when the player’s life ends), I don’t think he should be there. Or if he is, we definitely should bring in Joe Jackson. I love the legend of Joe Jackson, perhaps the best player of the 1910s, but one of the infamous “Black Sox,” the Chicago White Sox team that accepted money to throw the 1919 World Series. Jackson accepted money, the Sox lost, but Jackson was one of the best players in the Series. Was he playing his best? We'll never know. Everything from famous sayings (“Say it ain’t so, Joe”) to great novels (Shoeless Joe) to great movies (Eight Men Out and perhaps the best baseball movie ever, Field of Dreams, based on Shoeless Joe) are based on Joe Jackson’s story, but I think he should be remembered as a cautionary tale, not a hero.

I think that any time betting gets near any sports, there’s the potential for a financial incentive for a coach, or umpire, or player to perform less than their best. I want my games to be decided by who wins when everyone is trying their hardest. It’s one reason I’m a fan of instant replay – I want the game determined by players’ heroics or mistakes, not the mistakes of officials.  

The situation with betting and baseball is getting worse, and is likely to get even worse before it gets better. In Cleveland last weekend, I saw a fan wearing an autographed jersey of Emmanuel Clasé. I felt bad for that guy, because it looks like that jersey is not going to be worth a fraction of what it could have been, because of gambling. Clasé was placed on “non-disciplinary leave,” originally paid but now unpaid, in the middle of the 2025 season as part of an investigation into gambling acitivties for which Clasé, and fellow Guardians relief pitcher Luis Ortíz, are facing multiple federal indictments. Basically, the claim is that Clasé and Ortíz were paid by gamblers to throw a specific pitch (ball or strike, over or under a particular speed) at a specific time, and the gamblers made something like $500,000 on bets on those particular pitches. I don’t know how it will play out, but whether or not those two are guilty, the expansion of betting, including betting on individual events other than who wins or loses the game, means that gamblers are going to try to do this, if they haven’t already. I find the Clasé situation particularly painful, because he was one of the best relief pitchers in the game for the last several years, arguably the very best. He may never play again, and if so, he may have forfeited hundreds of millions of dollars for what was likely a few thousand dollar cut. 

Anything that sends the message the gambling isn't acceptable sounds good to me. That's another reason I don't want Pete Rose in the Hall of Fame. 

The game: Washington Nationals 10, Cincinnati Reds 4

The Nationals hit six home runs, two each by Luis García Jr. and Daylen Lile. Both having been playing regularly all season, and between them they had hit a total of four home runs going into the game. They doubled that total by the fifth inning.

After the Nats hit three home runs to take a 3-0 lead into the bottom of the fourth, the Reds loaded the bases with no one out, scored one run on a fielder's choice and one on an error to make it 3-2, and it looked like it was going to be competitive. But García homered on the first pitch of the bottom of the fourth, Lile hit a towering three-run homer later in the inning, and the rout was on.

Moving up and down

If you've been reading some of my posts about the minor league games, you know that I'm fascinated by the players who have had a taste of the majors and are trying to make their way back. Two of them were on my mind this evening. 

J. J. Bleday had an outstanding season for the Athletics in their last season in Oakland in 2024. He was one of the best players on a terrible team, hitting 20 home runs and playing centerfield well enough to lead all American League outfielders in putouts (balls caught on the fly) and come in second in assists (runners thrown out). Then he slumped badly last year, was released at the end of the year, and signed with the Reds, but didn't make the major league Opening Day roster. So he was playing on their Louisville AAA team when we saw them in mid-April. Would he get another chance at the bigs?

Bleday got called up to the majors two weeks ago, when another player was injured, and he's been making the most of it. He was one of the bright spots for the Reds in that 10-4 loss, getting two singles and two walks in five appearances at the plate. He also hit a foul ball that the scoreboard said left his bat at 114 mph, the highest exit velocity I've noticed this year. So he's back. The only question is whether he can stay.

 

Alek Thomas has played centerfield more often than any other player for the Diamondbacks for the last five seasons. His 2023 season was memorable. His defense was good enough to be a finalist for the Gold Glove award for the league's best fielding centerfielder (one of the toughest positions to play). He was a key part of the Diamondbacks' improbable run from being a wild card team to being in the World Series, hitting four home runs. 

He was good enough, in fact, that the team planned an Alek Thomas T-shirt giveaway day early the next season. Except that by the time that day came around, he was on the injured list, with an injury that kept him out most of the year. Kerry and I went to the game anyway, and she was excited to get the T-shirt because he's one of her favorite players. To our surprise, the person handing out T-shirts when we walked in the gate was Alek Thomas! I guess he might as well, since he wasn't going to be playing. Kerry treasures that shirt.

His problem is that he's been a streaky hitter, sometimes hitting well for several games in a row, sometimes hitting not at all for weeks at a time. When we saw the Diamondbacks play in Chicago last week, I was surprised that Thomas wasn't playing, in part because it's his home town. But the Diamondbacks have been struggling to score runs, and on an ineffective offense, Thomas has been the most ineffective regular.

This week, he was traded to the archrival Los Angeles Dodgers for a prospect who hasn't yet played a professional game. In other words, the Diamondbacks gave up on him. The Dodgers plan to send him to their AAA team, Oklahoma City, where he will serve as insurance against an injury to one of the major league players, none of whom field as well as he does, all of whom hit better than he does. 

His star has fallen. Will he make it back up? I suspect he will, as a defensive specialist if nothing else, but I don't know that he'll ever be a regular again. We're definitely rooting for him - after all, he once handed Kerry a shirt.