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>>> PERHAPS NO TEAM SPORT PLACES
MORE EMPHASIS ON THE INDIVIDUAL
AS DOES BASEBALL, AND IN THE
ANNALS OF BASEBALL HISTORY,
THERE MAY BE NO ONE MORE
SOLITARY THAN ONE PETE ROSE.
WHEN ROSE WAS PLAYING, HE WAS IN
A LEAGUE OF HIS OWN.
ATOP THE RANKINGS IN CAREER BATS
AND HITS.
AND IN THE PAST TWO DECADES IN
THE SCANDAL, HE'S ALSO IN THE
LEAGUE OF HIS OWN OUTSIDE THE
SPORT.
20 YEARS AGO THIS AUGUST, ROSE
WAS BANNED FOR LIFE WHEN
ALLEGATIONS SURFACED THAT THE
FORMER CINCINNATI REDS' STAR BET
ON BASEBALL GAMES.
ROSE VOLUNTARILY LEFT TO BE
PLACED ON LEAVE TO EVER PLAY
BALL.
THERE ARE CHARGES ROSE PUBLICLY
FINALLY ADMITTED TO FIVE YEARS
LATER.
BUT IN OUR NUMBER ONE STORY ON
THE "COUNTDOWN," IS BASEBALL
READY TO ISSUE A PARDON AND
REINSTATE PETE ROSE?
RECENT DEVELOPMENTS MAY SUGGEST
JUST THAT.
JOINING US NOW FROM COOPERSTOWN,
OUR MAN ON THE GROUND, WHO HAS A
JOB THAT'S A LOT HARDER THAN I
THOUGHT IT WAS, AND A VERY
FAMILIAR FACE TO ALL OF YOU,
KEITH OLBERMANN.
THANKS FOR TAKING TIME FROM YOUR
VACATION.
WHAT EXACTLY HAPPENED THIS
WEEKEND THAT ALL OF A SUDDEN
WE'RE TALKING ABOUT PETE ROSE
BEING REINSTATED?
>> WELL, FIRST OF ALL, GOVERNOR,
I HAVE TO TELL YOU, I LIKE THIS
SHOW A LOT BETTER THAN YOU HERE
THAN THAT USUAL IDIOT THEY HAVE
HOSTING IT.
BUT THE STUFF IS ALL
CIRCUMSTANTIAL.
BUD SELIG, THE COMMISSIONER,
STILL DOES NOT PETE ROSE
ANYWHERE NEAR THIS PLACE IN THE
BASEBALL HALL OF FAME, BEHIND
ME, OR ANYWHERE ELSE IN BASEBALL
FOR THAT MATTER.
BUT THERE'S INCREASING PRESSURE
WE SAW THIS WEEK WHO THAT
SUGGESTS THAT A LOT OF PEOPLE
WHO INFLUENCE BUD SELIG WILL BE
TRYING TO CONVINCE HIM THAT THE
TIME HAS COME TO GIVE ROSE AT
LEAST A CHANCE TO GET INTO THE
HALL OF FAME IF NOT BACK IN
BASEBALL IN A PAYING JOB.
AND IT'S ALL CIRCUMSTANTIAL.
SPARKY ANDERSON, HIS FORMER
MANAGER, WHO HAD NOT TALKED TO
HIM IN 20 YEARS SINCE HE WAS
BANNED, CAME TO A BASEBALL CARD
SHOP THAT ROSE WAS SIGNING
AUTOGRAPHS AT ABOUT A BLOCK AND
A HALF FROM HERE AND WITH TEARS
IN HIS EYES SAID YOU MADE A LOT
OF MISTAKES 20 YEARS AGO.
IT SHOULDN'T DETRACT FROM WHAT
YOU DID IN BASEBALL.
THE VICE CHAIRMAN OF THE HALL OF
FAME WAS HERE AND TALKED TO ROSE
FOR HOURS.
MIKE SCHMIDT CAME BY TO EXPRESS
SOME SORT OF SUPPORT.
THE MOST CURIOUS EVENT OF ALL,
GOVERNOR, WAS THAT THE MLB
CHAIRMAN AND PRESIDENT, CHIEF
OPERATING OFFICER AND PRESIDENT,
BOB DUPAY, WAS SEEN IN THAT CARD
SHOP.
I DON'T KNOW IF HE SAID, HEY,
PETE, YOU STINK OR WHATEVER HE
SAID TO HIM, BUT HE VISITED WITH
HIM, TOO.
SO SOMETHING'S GOING ON AS MUCH
AS BASEBALL IS INSISTING THAT
NOTHING HAS OFFICIALLY CHANGED,
AND THE 20th AN VERSE RIB WILL
COME AND GO NEXT MONTH WITH PETE
ROSE STILL BEING SUSPECTED.
>> KEITH, YOU HAD A CHANCE TO
SPEAK WITH PETE ROSE OVER THIS
WEEKEND.
WHAT CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT THE
CONVERSATION, AND WHAT WAS HIS
MOOD LIKE?
>> IT WAS VERY STRANGE, BECAUSE
ROSE IS USUALLY ANYTHING BUT
TACITURN ON THIS SUBJECT.
WILL HE TELL YOU HOW MUCH HE
DESERVES TO BE BACK AND WHAT A
BENEFIT HE WILL BE TO THE GAME.
HE WAS GIVING ONE-RECORD ANSWER
TO QUESTIONS.
HE SAID HE UNDERPLAYED WAS
MORGAN WAS DOING HERE.
HE SAID THE VISIT WAS SPARKY WAS
VERY NICE, BUT HE DIDN'T GO INTO
ANY DETAIL.
HE JUST LISTED WHO WAS THERE.
AND THAT IS SO ATYPICAL TO ROSE,
THAT IT SUGGESTS THAT HE IS
TRYING TO -- HIS CRITICS WOULD
SAY PUT ON A GOOD SENSE OF
BEHAVIOR.
ONE WAY OR ANOTHER, HE'S BEING
QUIET WHERE USUALLY HE IS AS
LOUD AS THEY COME.
JUST AS A SIDE STORY TO THIS, AS
IF YOU CAN IMAGINE SUCH A THING,
AS WE'RE TALKING TO PETE ROSE,
NOT 20 MINUTES AGO, ROGER
CLEMENS WALKED THROUGH THIS TOWN
BECAUSE HIS SON HAPPENS TO BE
PLAYING AT A 12-YEAR-OLD'S
TOURNAMENT AT A STADIUM IN
COOPERSTOWN.
SO YOU TALK ABOUT THE VILLAGE OF
THE DAMNED, PERHAPS, OVER THE
COURSE OF A COUPLE OF DAYS HERE,
ROSE AND THEN CLEMENS IN JUST A
FOUR-DAY PERIOD.
>> SPEAKING OF ALL OF THAT
GAMBLING, ALWAYS BEEN BIGGEST
BASEBALL TABOO TO THE 1994
SCANDAL.
BUT PERFORMANCE-ENHANCING DRUGS,
WHICH CLEMENS HAS BEEN ACCUSED
OF, THE BRIGHTEST STARS HAVE
CAST A CLOUD OF SUSPICION OVER
THE SPORT.
IS DRUG USE IN BASEBALL BECOMING
A BIGGER BLACK EYE FOR THE SPORT
THAN GAMBLING'S EVER BEEN?
>> IT'S INTERESTING BECAUSE IT'S
SO MUCH EASIER FOR FANS TO
RELATE TO NEGATIVELY THAN THE
IDEA OF GAMBLING, OR WHAT'S THE
DIFFERENCE IF YOU BET ON A GAME
OR YOU BET ON YOUR OWN TEAM?
IT BECOMES SOMETHING THAT NEEDS
EXPLANATION.
I THINK THE
PERFORMANCE-ENHANCING DRUGS
ISSUE GETS THROUGH TO THE FANS
PRETTY QUICKLY AND PRETTY
DIRECTLY, AND THE BIG PROBLEM
WITH THAT, HOWARD, IS AS WE LOOK
AHEAD IN THE NEXT FIVE, TEN
YEARS HERE, THERE ARE GOING TO
BE FEWER AND FEWER AUTOMATIC
HALL OF FAMERS.
THIS WAS A GREAT, WONDERFUL
WEEKEND.
RICEY HENDERSON, JIM RICE.
AUTOMATIC PEOPLE GUYS LOVE.
LINES WERE AROUND THE BLOCK FOR
THEM.
APPLAUSE AND CHORES AND GOOD
FEELING ALL AROUND.
MAYBE NOT SO FOR THE NEXT FIVE
YEARS OF NEW HALL OF FAME
ELIGIBILITIES UNTIL GREG MAD
DUMB BECOMES ELIGIBILITY.
IBM RONICALLY MAYBE IT BECOMES
PETE ROSE LOOKS NOT LESS GUILTY
FOR WHAT HE DID BUT LESS GUILTY
IN THE CONTEXT OF WHAT OTHER
PLAYERS HAVE DONE WITH DRUGS.
>> ONE OF THE THINGS YOU WROTE
IN YOUR BLOG, IN THE 30 SECONDS
IN WHICH WE HAVE LEFT, IS HANK
AARON IS PLAYING A MAJOR ROLE IN
THIS BECAUSE OF HIS FRIENDSHIP
WITH BUD SELIG.
YOU WANT TO TALK A LITTLE BIT
ABOUT THAT?
>> VERY SIMPLY, BUD SELIG
WORSHIPS HANK AARON, HE'S ONE OF
HIS BEST FRIENDS.
AND HANK AARON SAID PUBLICLY THE
OTHER DAY HERE, IT'S TIME PETE
SHOULD BE IN THE HALL OF FAME.