Former president Donald Trump once bid to induct Pete Rose into Hall of Fame despite lifetime ban

Pete Rose played in Major League Baseball for 23 seasons. Despite being a fabulous switch hitter, his career was marred by gambling addiction.

In August 1989, Rose was penalized with permanent ineligibility from baseball amid accusations of gambling on games while he played and managed the Cincinnati Reds.

In 2020, former president Donald Trump came to his aid and took to Twitter, where he called on Major League Baseball to lift his lifetime ban for gambling and induct him into the Hall of Fame.

He said:

“Pete Rose played Major League Baseball for 24 seasons, from 1963-1986, and had more hits, 4,256, than any other player (by a wide margin). He gambled, but only on his own team winning, and paid a decades-long price. Get Pete Rose into the Baseball Hall of Fame. It’s Time!”

Former U.S. President Donald Trump at Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, New Jersey.

Rose recently also approached Rob Manfred, the baseball commissioner, to remove his name from the MLB’s ineligible list. This would be the first step towards redemption, and would also allow him to be considered for the induction into the Hall of Fame.

He wrote a petition in which he argued that the league has not decided to punish players guilty of stealing other teams’ signs in games.

Rob Manfred however denied Rose’s appeal for reinstatement in 2015 because the player had not “presented credible evidence of a reconfigured life.” Manfred wrote in 2015 that allowing Rose to work in baseball “presents an unacceptable risk of a future violation by him.”

Pete Rose's journey in the MLB

Pete Rose plied his trade in MLB from 1963 to 1986. He played for the Cincinnati Reds, the Montreal Expos, and Philadelphia Phillies and also served as the manager of the Reds from 1984-1989.

"What's ur opinion on this? #PeteRose http://ow.ly/cVgE50Hve5q" - Joey Myers, Twitter

Rose is the all-time MLB leader in hits, games played, at-bats, singles, and outs. He won three World Series titles, three batting titles, one MVP award, two Gold Gloves, and the Rookie of the Year Award, while also making 11 All-Star appearances.