Bring Pete Back

4 Pages 1067 Words

Larry Pellegrini
Bring Pete Back
Pete Rose set the bar for major league baseball excellence for twenty-four years. For those twenty-four years, he exhibited how the game should be played. Game in and game out, he gave everything he had and never settled. During his time in professional baseball, it was never Pete Rose’s playing that was ever in question. It was what he was doing when he was not on the field that sparked all the controversy. On February 20, 1989, investigations began on Pete’s gambling habits. Rose accepted a lifetime ban from baseball on August 8, 1989 for committing baseball's capital crime. During the years between 1985 and 1987, Pete Rose bet on his own team. Rose was sentenced on July 19, 1990 to five months in prison and then, following his prison time, three months in a half-way house. Rose may never be able to enter baseball's Hall of Fame. Rose holds numerous Major League Baseball records, and his performance on the diamond during his career is as Hall of Fame worthy as it gets. Now, over fourteen years since the ban, the debate rolls on: “Should Pete be allowed back?”(A.P.)
During his years playing baseball, Pete put up numbers that some considered impossible. Pete holds eighteen Major League Records to this day. Most notably, Pete holds the all time record for hits in a career with 4,256, and games played with 3,562. Pete’s career batting average is .303, which is an incredible feat considering how long he
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played. These are just a few strong examples of Pete’s Hall of Fame career. And while many argue that he should be in the Hall of Fame, Pete can not be inducted unless he is reinstated into baseball (PETEROSE.com).
Although Pete had broke a very strong rule, many topics point in his direction for reinstatement. Rose has admitted to betting on his team, and contrast to popular opinion, it has never been determined whether or not he bet against his team. If guilty of betti...