Pete Rose Remains Banned for Life in Baseball

Pete Rose remains banned for life from Major League Baseball. Commissioner Rob Manfred announced Monday that he had rejected Rose's plea for reinstatement, citing his continued gambling and evidence that he bet on games when he was playing for the Cincinnati Reds.

Manfred said in a letter sent to Rose and made public that baseball's hits king hasn't been completely honest about his gambling. The commissioner also noted that Rose continues to bet on baseball legally, even though his gambling got him into trouble, making it an "unacceptable risk" to let him back in the game.

"Mr. Rose's public and private comments, including his initial admission in 2004, provide me with little confidence that he has a mature understanding of his wrongful conduct, that he has accepted full responsibility for it, or that he understands the damage he has caused," Manfred wrote.

Rose agreed to the ban in August 1989 after an investigation for Major League Baseball by lawyer John Dowd.

On Monday, Rose's attorneys issued a statement that said they were disappointed with the decision and are reviewing the ruling with Rose and his family. Rose is expected to speak publicly Tuesday.

The statement goes on to say, "Pete's fall from grace is without parallel but he recognizes that it was also of his own making. As such, Pete seeks to be judged not just by the mistakes of his past, but also by the work he has done over the last three decades to take responsibility for his actions."

Manfred tried to clarify that this decision does not affect Rose's eligibility for the Hall of Fame.

"In my view, the considerations that should drive a decision on whether an individual should be allowed to work in Baseball are not the same as those that should drive a decision on Hall of Fame eligibility," Manfred wrote. "... Any debate over Mr. Rose's eligibility for the Hall of Fame is one that must take place in a different forum."

The Hall of Fame's board of directors voted in 1991 to ban those on the permanently ineligible list from the Baseball Writers' Association of America ballot.