CHARLIE HUSTLE SHOULD BE IN COOPERSTOWN

That’s Amaury News and Commentary

Amaury Pi-González

When I first arrived in the United States as a young teen in 1961, I remember people saying, “In America, everybody deserves a second chance.” Well, Pete Rose, as a player, never got that chance by the MLB Hall of Fame. Charlie Hustle was banned from baseball in 1989 for gambling on the Cincinnati Reds team he managed; that makes a lot of sense. As a manager, he made the moves; some of them could win a game, and some could not, but he had absolute control throughout any match. Common sense tells us that for baseball, it was correct to ban him for life as a manager. But as a player?

In the United States of America, even criminals, big-time felons, go to prison, serve their time, rehabilitate later, and join society again. Example: O.J Simpson, and we know that story.

As a player, Pete Rose is the all-time Hits King, with 4,256 hits. #2 in Ty Cobb, 4189 hits; if we used today’s standards, Ty Cobb should lead a new Hall of Fame, “The Racist Hall of Fame, and ‘trust me’ he will have competition, even managers.

Today, the Hall of Fame’s various committees elect participants other than recently retired players. The most active is the Veterans Committee.

I hope that for the sake of the great game of baseball and future generations, Pete Rose could be elected to the Hall of Fame as a player. Why? Because he was one of the best baseball players ever to wear a uniform.  Whether or not you like his personality, you do not elect people for their personality flaws but for the merit of their performance. 

With 4,256 hits, who could argue with a career of such magnitude, especially during this time in baseball history when the average batting average in baseball is.a paltry .240.

I covered Pete Rose as a player, and he should be in the Hall of Fame. Period.