Pete Rose, MLB legend, dies at 83

According to TMZ, baseball legend Pete Rose has died at the age of 83. Rose is the all-time MLB hit leader and spent the majority of his career with the Cincinnati Reds. Time was also spent with the Montreal Expos and Philadelphia Phillies.

Rose’s agent, Ryan Fiterman of Fiterman Sports, later confirmed the news to TMZ.

“The family is asking for privacy at this time,” Fiterman said.

One of the best ever to play the game, Rose played for 24 years, 16 of which were in Cincinnati. He was named to 17 All-Star games, won three World Series (two with Cincinnati, another with Philadelphia), and won the National League MVP in 1973.

Rose is most well known for being the MLB all-time hit leader with 4,256 hits. On three occasions the switch hitter won the batting title, with his best-ever season being in 1969 with a .348 average in 731 plate appearances.

Career games played plate appearances, and at-bats are three other statistics Rose will find his name at the top of the list. Defensively, most of his time was spent in the outfield but also saw action at every infield position besides shortstop.

However, there has been no Hall of Fame induction for Rose after being banned from baseball back in 1989 due to a gambling scandal. MLB found Rose was gambling on games as a player and was placed on the league’s ineligible list. At the time, Rose was the Reds’ manager.

Multiple attempts had been made by Rose to be reinstated to the league, attempted to be named into the Baseball Hall of Fame. Multiple commissioners spanning three-plus decades have denied the notion, though. Current commissioner, Rob Manfred, most recently did in 2022.

When MLB accepted sponsorship deals with major gambling companies, Manfred was asked if baseball would reinstate Rose. He quickly shot down the idea.

“We’ve always approached the issue of gambling from the proposition that players and other people who are in a position to influence the outcome of the game are going to be subject to a different set of rules than everyone else in the world,” Manfred said in July 2023.

“Pete Rose violated what is sort of rule one in baseball, and the consequences of that are clear in the rule, and we’ve continued to abide by our own rules. It’s just the rules are different for players. It’s part of the responsibility that comes with the privilege of being a major league player.”