Pete Rose is now eligible for the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred has removed Pete Rose, "Shoeless" Joe Jackson and other deceased players from Major League Baseball's permanently ineligible list for the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Manfred ruled that MLB's punishment of banned individuals ends upon their deaths.
"Obviously, a person no longer with us cannot represent a threat to the integrity of the game," Manfred wrote in a letter to attorney Jeffrey M. Lenkov, who petitioned for Rose's removal from the list January 8. "Moreover, it is hard to conceive of a penalty that has more deterrent effect than one that lasts a lifetime with no reprieve. Therefore, I have concluded that permanent ineligibility ends upon the passing of the disciplined individual, and Mr. Rose will be removed from the permanently ineligible list."
Rose passed away in September 2024 at the age of 80.
Rose is the greatest hitter in MLB history, sitting as the all-time leader with 4,256 hits. During his career, Rose appeared in 17 All-Star games, won three World Series, and won the NL MVP in 1973. He retired in 1986.
Rose was banned from baseball in 1989 after the league determined he bet on games. He publicly admitted to gambling as a player and manager for the Cincinnati Reds in his 2004 autobiography.
He was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame Celebrity wing in 2004.
