Once a year during the middle part of July, Cooperstown, N.Y., becomes the most important town in America.
It is home to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, and in July, thousands of fans flock to see the newest class of inductees. From players such as German Herman “Babe” Ruth and Henry “Hank” Aaron to managers like Sparky Anderson and Tommy Lasorda, 289 men have been inducted.
If you were to scroll through this list, you would see record holders upon record holders down the line: most home runs (at the time, Hank Aaron), most stolen bases (Rickey Henderson) and most strikeouts by a pitcher (Nolan Ryan).
If you knew much about baseball as you eyed the list of inductees, you would notice one category was absent. The record holder for most all-time hits is missing.
However, if you were to visit Cooperstown during the induction ceremonies, you could meet the man who holds this record by visiting his table outside of Hall of Fame.
Some call him Charlie Hustle, but most just call him Pete. He holds the records for most hits (4,256) and most games played (3,562) among others. Yet Pete Rose is not in the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
In August 1989, Rose was permanently banned from baseball, which included induction into the Hall of Fame.
He must have done something terrible, right? He must have paid off the umpires, used illegal performance enhancing drugs or otherwise given himself an unfair advantage while playing. Right?
No. Pete Rose was banned from baseball for betting on games as a player and manager, including games in which his team, the Cincinnati Reds, played. He agreed to the permanent ineligibility from baseball to avoid further consequences.
It is now 20 years later, and many people, including players already in the Hall of Fame, argue that Pete Rose has done his time.
I have to agree, not only for the reason that 20 years of being banned from something just for betting is enough punishment, but also because Rose’s statistics deserve the Hall. He never did anything wrong that would improve his ability to hit the ball, and therefore his record deserves to be in Cooperstown.
If the commissioner and voters plan to let steroid users like Barry Bonds, who now holds the home run record, or Rafael Palmeiro, who pointed his finger at a congressional committee and lied about steroid use, then they should plan on letting in Pete Rose.
Yes, he did bet on baseball, one of the worst sins against the game a player or manager can commit.
However, he has admitted to and apologized for it. Charlie Hustle holds one of the greatest records in all of baseball, and as for now, the only recognition he gets for it is a table outside the Hall of Fame and a line of loving fans, who know where he really belongs.
Ben Leiker is a sophomore majoring in biological engineering. He can be contacted at [email protected].