Earlier this month, the office of the commissioner of Major League Baseball, Rob Manfred, announced that the league was reinstating 17 dead players from the permanently ineligible list. Most famously, Pete Rose and “Shoeless” Joe Jackson were on that list and the most pressing issue for nearly everyone in the baseball world is whether or not this means Rose would be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Rose had been banned from baseball since a ruling from commissioner Bart Giamatti back in 1989 following an investigation that confirmed Rose gambled on baseball games while a manager of the Cincinnati Reds in the ’80s. Rose died in September of 2024, and the discourse began again about whether the ban continued after death.
On the decision to reinstate Rose, Manfred discussed the matter with “CBS Mornings” on Thursday.
“I would say three things,” Manfred said when asked about the decision to reinstate. “No. 1: Our permanently ineligible list is effectively a ban on working in the game. This is a matter of logic. There’s no reason to have a person who has passed away still on that list. No. 2: Pete Rose is a part of the history of our game. Every other player, including ‘Shoeless’ Joe Jackson, has been considered by the Hall of Fame and they’ve made a decision. I saw no reason to leave Pete Rose out there as one of one, no consideration.
“And then, last, I think what people don’t realize is Pete Rose wasn’t disciplined by commissioner Giamatti. He entered a settlement agreement with the league. At the time they entered into that settlement, he went on the permanently ineligible list knowing that the rules allowed the Hall of Fame to consider him. Commissioner Giamatti went out, had a press conference the day of the settlement and he was asked about the Hall of Fame and he said this settlement should have nothing to do with the Hall of Fame. The Hall of Fame should consider Pete Rose under its existing rules. So I see the decision as baseball living up to the deal that they originally made with Pete Rose.”
Manfred was then asked if it was a difficult decision.
“Yeah, it’s a difficult decision because people are passionate about issues like this,” Manfred said. “When you come up the side of the business that I came up, living up to your agreements is a really important thing and this was overdue in my opinion.”
The Hall of Fame has announced that the next time Rose would be considered for a vote would be in the Classic Era Committee, which meets in December 2027 with consideration for the 2028 Hall of Fame class.
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