Pete Rose may finally get his shot at the Hall of Fame.
After decades of being shut out, baseball’s all-time hit king could get his due.
And now Major League Baseball legend Pete Rose’s final interviewer has just revealed the shocking role he says Trump played in the historic decision.
MLB changes rules about banned players after death
Major League Baseball announced on Tuesday that players on baseball’s ineligible list will be reinstated after their deaths.
This bombshell decision paves the way for Pete Rose, baseball’s all-time hit king with 4,256 hits, to potentially enter the Hall of Fame despite being banned from the sport since 1989 for betting on games.
The timing of the announcement is noteworthy as President Donald Trump had promised back in March that he would pardon Rose “in the coming weeks.” Fox News reported that Trump and MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred met last month, though what they discussed wasn’t officially revealed.
John Condit, who conducted Rose’s final interview just ten days before his death, had been advocating for Trump to use his influence to help Rose’s case.
Rose predicted he’d only make the Hall of Fame after his death
In a chilling coincidence, Rose told Condit during his final interview – just ten days before his death – that if he were ever to make the Hall of Fame, it would not happen until after he died.
According to Fox News, when Condit heard of Rose’s death, he “began to shake” considering what Rose had told him just days prior.
That grim prediction is now on track to come true.
Rose was banned from baseball in 1989 for betting on games while managing the Cincinnati Reds. For decades, his supporters have argued that while he made serious mistakes off the field, his on-field accomplishments merited inclusion in Cooperstown.
The Hall of Fame specifically changed its rules in 1991 to prevent anyone on baseball’s ineligible list from being considered for induction. That rule effectively blocked Rose’s path to baseball immortality – until now.
Trump’s long-standing support for Pete Rose
President Trump has been a vocal advocate for Rose’s Hall of Fame candidacy for years. In 2016, he tweeted support for Rose’s inclusion in the Hall of Fame.
Prior to MLB’s announcement, Condit had started a petition to get Trump to pardon Rose before the Cincinnati Reds’ planned celebration of Rose at Great American Ball Park this Wednesday night.
“I love the fact that President Trump is considering using his pulpit to make this right, at least in the eyes of millions of baseball fans who say ‘he did a lot of bad things off the field, he lied, but darn it, statistically he should be in the Hall of Fame,'” Condit told Fox News Digital before MLB’s announcement.
With MLB’s rule change, Trump’s planned pardon is no longer necessary for Rose to have a chance at Cooperstown. Following the announcement, many baseball fans who supported Trump’s efforts to help Rose are celebrating this development.
The path to Cooperstown finally opens
While Rose’s reinstatement doesn’t guarantee his entry to the Hall of Fame, it removes the biggest obstacle that had previously made his induction impossible.
The baseball writers who vote on Hall of Fame candidates will now have the opportunity to evaluate Rose based on his on-field accomplishments rather than his off-field mistakes.
Condit, who has known Rose personally since the 1980s, acknowledges that Rose made serious mistakes but believes in second chances.
“No saint. In fact, did a lot wrong,” Condit said of Rose, according to Fox News. “I believe in second chances and third chances and maybe seven chances. And I think statistically it’s a great time to say, you know what? He paid his price. It’s time for him to go to the Hall of Fame.”
After MLB’s announcement, Condit expressed his joy to Fox News Digital: “I’m extremely happy. My fear was if this did not happen, that the greatest moment for Pete Rose after his passing would be Wednesday night at Cincinnati. Instead, we’ve got a celebration in Cincinnati that we didn’t have three hours ago. Now, we got a real shot, a real
shot for him to get into the Hall of Fame, which is what Pete Rose fans want. So I’m ecstatic.”
This is a victory for Rose’s legacy and for the principle of redemption that many Americans believe in strongly. It gives the all-time hit king a chance to receive the recognition his athletic achievements deserve, even if it comes after his death.
