Pete Rose, “Shoeless” Joe Removed From MLB’s Banned List

COOPERSTOWN, NY — Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred on Tuesday removed Pete Rose, "Shoeless" Joe Jackson and other deceased players from Major League Baseball's list of players ineligible for the Hall of Fame.

Rose, a 17-time All-Star and the game’s all-time hits leader, has been banned since 1989, when an MLB investigation determined he bet on games while managing the Cincinnati Reds.

Jackson, perhaps the best-known player from the infamous 1919 Chicago White Sox team that fixed the World Series, was one of eight players from that team permanently barred from the Hall of Fame.

More than 100 years later, MLB is finally opening the door for Jackson and his teammates.

Rose, who died in September at 83, previously expressed that he expected to be eligible for the Hall of Fame after his death.

"Obviously, a person no longer with us cannot represent a threat to the integrity of the game," Manfred wrote in a letter to attorney Jeffrey M. Lenkov, who petitioned for Rose's removal from the list Jan. 8. "Moreover, it is hard to conceive of a penalty that has more deterrent effect than one that lasts a lifetime with no reprieve.

"Therefore, I have concluded that permanent ineligibility ends upon the passing of the disciplined individual, and Mr. Rose will be removed from the permanently ineligible list."

Earlier this year, President Donald Trump stated his desire to pardon Rose. 

"Over the next few weeks I will be signing a complete PARDON of Pete Rose, who shouldn't have been gambling on baseball, but only bet on HIS TEAM WINNING," Trump wrote on Truth Social in February.