When MLB legend Joe Morgan backed Pete Rose's berth in the HOF despite gambling history
In a 2013 interview with USA Today, Joe Morgan revealed that Pete Rose should be allowed in the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Morgan, who was a broadcaster for ESPN, is a former MLB second baseman and a two-time World Series champion. Both Morgan and Pete Rose were teammates on the Cincinnati Reds from 1972 to 1978.
Pete Rose was banned from baseball for life back in 1989 after he was caught betting on the Cincinnati Reds while he was the manager of the team. This ended up making him ineligible to be voted into Cooperstown.
Joe Morgan shared his thoughts on how he felt about Rose being banned from entering the Baseball Hall of Fame. He said:
“I think if you’re going to allow guys with PEDs on the ballot, then we have to allow him to be on the ballot. Let’s face it, he’s been punished for 24 years"
The former second baseman continued with:
"I think they have to take a second look at Pete now that this has come out.”
1/ We begin with Ken Griffey Sr.
Before Junior became the smiling, charismatic face of 90s baseball...
Senior was a stalwart on Cincinnati's famous 1970s Big Red Machine.
He played with Johnny Bench, Joe Morgan, Pete Rose..... https://t.co/drGrXLcZq3
Pete Rose wrote an open letter to Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred in 2022. He asked for the ban to be lifted so he can be voted into the Baseball Hall of Fame before he passes away:
""Despite my many mistakes, I am so proud of what I accomplished as a baseball player. I am the Hit King and it is my dream to be considered for the Hall of Fame. Like all of us, I believe in accountability. I am 81 years old and know that I have been held accountable and that I hold myself accountable. I write now to ask for another chance."
However, his request was rejected by the Commissioner.
When Joe Morgan wrote a letter to MLB to not include players who used steroids.
Joe Morgan, who is friends with Pete Rose, was adamant about his admission to the Hall of Fame. However, he wasn't as welcoming to the idea of players using steroids being enshrined in Cooperstown.
He wrote a letter to Howard Bryte, a journalist who had published his letter to Twitter:
"I think the Hall of Fame is special. There is a sanctity to being elected to the Hall. It is revered."
Morgan added:
"It is the hardest Hall of Fame to enter, of any sport in America. We hope the day never comes when known steroid users are voted into the Hall of Fame. They cheated. Steroid users don't belong here."
He continued with:
"Players who failed drug tests, admitted using steroids, or were identified as users in Major League."
Fans are signing this for Joe Morgan on his day in Cincinnati. It’ll hang permanently in the Reds Hall of Fame. https://t.co/0s5akHV0YQ
Joe Morgan was enshrined in the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1990. He got in on his first try with 81.8% of votes in his favor. Morgan died as a result of unspecified polyneuropathy in 2020.