Pete Rose Petitions Baseball Hall of Fame for Ballot Inclusion

Pete Rose received a lifetime ban from baseball back in 1989 for gambling on game as a field manager. Now he's asking the National Baseball Hall of Fame to reconsider his candidacy for enshrinement.

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A seven-page letter was written and sent to Hall president Jeff Idelson by Rose, attorney Raymond Genco, abd ACLU lawyer Mark Rosenbaum arguing for Rose's inclusion on future ballots. Rose's initial ban by then-commissioner Bart Giamatti excluded language that would have kept him from getting into the Hall of Fame.

The letter states: “At the time Pete agreed to the settlement, the consequences of being placed on the ineligible list were clear and specific – and did not include a Hall of Fame prohibition.”

Two years after Rose's ban and one year before he'd appear on a ballot, the Hall of Fame established a rule which barred permanently ineligible players from enshrinement.

The letter continues: “No one associated with the game other than Pete has ever been categorically denied eligibility from day one after the conclusion of his career for actions having nothing to do with the way they played baseball.”