Pete Rose strikes out again in pursuit of Hall of Fame

Looks like the Hit King has struck out again with commissioner Rob Manfred.

Pete Rose’s latest plea to have his lifetime ban lifted, delivered to Manfred in a letter earlier this month, was summarily dismissed Thursday by the commissioner, who also indicated that Rose shouldn’t bother wasting his time with any further attempts.

“This is interesting,” Manfred said Thursday after the owners meetings wrapped up at MLB headquarters in midtown Manhattan. “I believe that when you bet on baseball, from Major League Baseball’s perspective, you belong on the permanently ineligible list.”

Manfred did offer one disclaimer, however. As it currently stands, anyone on MLB’s permanently ineligible list cannot be considered for Hall of Fame enshrinement. And under those guidelines, Rose remains frozen out of Cooperstown. But Manfred repeated Thursday that he believes those two things don’t necessarily have to be linked.

“When I dealt with the issue last time he applied for reinstatement, I made clear that I didn’t think the function of that baseball list was the same as the eligibility criteria for the Hall of Fame. That remains my position. I think it’s a conversation that really belongs in the Hall of Fame board. I’m on that board, and it’s just not appropriate for me to get in front of that conversation.”

Rose, 81, agreed to a lifetime ban issued by then-commissioner Bart Giamatti in 1989 after an MLB investigation revealed that he had bet on Reds games and others as the team’s player-manager. Two years later, the Hall of Fame passed a rule that forbid any player on the ineligible list to be voted on for Cooperstown.

This month’s letter marks the third time in seven years that Rose has sought reinstatement by MLB, and second since 2020, when he cited the relatively lenient penalties stemming from the Astros’ cheating scandal as a reason for Manfred to reconsider. This time around, Rose leans heavily on his advancing age, contrition and his longing for the Hall of Fame.

"I am writing today for three reasons," Rose said in the letter, which was released to TMZ. "First, because at my age I want to be 100% sure that you understand how much I mean it when I say that I'm sorry. Second, to ask for your forgiveness. And third, because I still think every day about what it would mean to be considered for the Hall of Fame.

“I am asking for your forgiveness. Despite my many mistakes, I am so proud of what I accomplished as a baseball player — I am the Hit King and it is my dream to be considered for the Hall of Fame. Like all of us, I believe in accountability.  I am 81 years old and know that I have been held accountable and that I hold myself accountable. I write now to ask for another chance.”

Obviously, Rose won’t be getting one from Manfred, who did green-light his return to Citizens Bank Park in August for the reunion of the 1980 Phillies’ World Series team. And even if the Cooperstown board made the very unlikely decision to allow Rose’s candidacy independent of Manfred’s list, he would still need the approval of one committee to actually appear on a ballot and then 12 votes from a 16-member panel — composed of Hall of Famers, executives and baseball media — to gain induction. That pathway seems to be virtually impossible during his lifetime.

By David Lennon

dave.lennon@newsday.comDPLennon

David Lennon is an award-winning columnist, a voter for baseball's Hall of Fame and has covered six no-hitters, including two perfect games.