One of the most contentious issues in professional sports still exists 25 years after Pete Rose accepted a lifetime suspension for betting on baseball.
Rose’s Personal Life
On April 14, 1941, Peter Edward Rose was born in Cincinnati, Ohio. He was raised in the adjacent Anderson Ferry, Ohio, as one of Harry and LaVerne Rose's four children.
Early on, Rose was encouraged to participate in athletics by his father, who had formerly been a semi-professional football player. One rumor is that Harry Rose once went downtown to buy shoes for his daughter but returned with a set of boxing gloves for Pete.
Rose played baseball with neighborhood pals for most of his childhood and eventually joined the community Little League team. He participated in baseball and football at Cincinnati's Western Hills High School, where he excelled most in the latter event.
He was initially given the Geneva Red Legs, a Reds farm team in upstate New York, as part of his deal with the Reds.
His Career
Buddy Bloebaum, who worked as a scout for the Reds, made the large club aware of the young athlete. After he graduated from high school in 1960, they decided to sign him.
He participated in games with the Macon Peaches in 1962, the Tampa Tarpons in 1961, and the Geneva (New York) Redlegs in 1960. He started playing second base in the field and swinging the bat well at each stop. He accepted the Reds' invitation to spring training in 1963, made the club, and made his MLB debut on Opening Day.
Rose had a 0 for 11 career debut. It didn't portend bad things to come.
Even casual admirers know what Rose did in the following two decades. Rose received Rookie of the Year honors in his rookie season, batting.273 with 101 runs scored. Between 1963 and 1978, he was a member of the Reds teams that won the World Series in 1975 and 1976. From 1979 to 1983, he was a member of the Philadelphia Phillies, where he won a World Series in 1980.
He completed his career at Cincinnati between 1984 and 1986 as a player-manager.
- Three times led the league in batting average (1968, 1969, 1973)
- Seven times led the league in hits (1965, 1968, 1970, 1972, 1973, 1976, 1981)
- A participant on 17 all-star teams
- 1973 national league MVP award winner
- Set records for your career in terms of hits (4,256), singles (3,215), games (3,562), at-bats (14,053), and plate appearances (14,053). (15,890)
Despite his outstanding performance on the field, Rose is not eligible for employment by MLB or induction into the Hall of Fame since a baseball inquiry revealed that Rose had wagered on baseball, including 52 games involving his club. According to the article, he may wager up to $10,000 daily.