Charlie Hustle & the Matter of Pete Rose (2024) s01e02 Episode Script
The Dirty Work
1
- Hello, Mr. Rose.
- Hi.
- How are you?
- How are you?
- Good.
- How are you?
- Good, good.
- And you?
Nice to see y'all.
Hi, how are you?
- How are you, Pete?
Hey, how are you?
Man, you guys know I
got bad fucking knees.
Where am I walking?
Down to the stadium?
Why not?
We welcome to the
Hard Rock four people
who need no introduction, and
yet I'm going to do it anyway.
Of course you know,
nearest to me, Pete Rose,
of course, George
Foster, Ken Griffey Sr.,
and Marty Brennaman.
Pete, we'll start with you.
If you were manager of the
Reds, finish this sentence
"If I were manager of
the Reds, I would"
Go to church every day.
I don't know whose
fault it is down there.
It'll boil down to the players,
but I can't blame the manager.
I mean, you know, when I
managed the Reds for all
those years, I
never thought I sent
the wrong guy up to pinch hit.
I never thought I brought the
wrong guy in to face the hitter
that was in the batter's box.
But it doesn't always work out.
What makes a good manager?
One thing.
Does anybody know what it is?
Good players.
You're only as good as
the guy in front of you
or the guy behind you.
Ladies and gentlemen,
the greatest player
in the history of
baseball, Pete Rose.
Batting first and
playing left field,
number 14, Pete Rose.
One of the game's
greatest players
has engaged in a variety of acts
which have stained the game.
That's what I
think of Pete Rose.
Boo!
Mr. Rose has
accepted baseball's
ultimate sanction, which
is lifetime ineligibility.
Yeah, it's a tough case.
I mean, you know,
it's a tough one,
but a big injury if
he had you know,
with the reconstructive.
I mean, Chris is a highly
capable senior guy,
so he knows what to do.
But I'll I'll join soon also.
OK.
All right, I'll see you later.
Thanks.
Me? Yeah.
I'm meeting with Dan Halem,
who is the second in command.
I have been pursuing
meetings with MLB
on Pete for about two years.
And this is the end result
of that pursuit of getting
a discussion now timely
about the reinstatement issue
and how they view it.
I haven't pursued reinstatement
for a lot of people.
Rose has been declared
permanently ineligible
to participate in baseball.
But under the rules of
Major League Baseball,
he has the right to apply for
reinstatement in one year.
My life is baseball.
I hope to get back into baseball
as soon as I possibly can.
Pete is a unique
character in that
a lot of what he's
gone through in life
was sort of self-inflicted.
I don't think I have a
gambling problem at all.
I had a couple of really good
attorneys that said, nope,
don't admit you bet on anything.
I didn't think they
had any kind of proof,
and that's what I did.
Giamatti based his
decision on two things
evidence of the
commissioned report
by Special Investigator
John Dowd and the lack
of a formal defense by Rose.
Dowd was a professional
prosecutor.
He brought down mafia people.
They had gathered all the
information they needed
within a couple of weeks.
As he tells the story, he
talked to Rose himself.
He showed Rose's lawyers
all of the evidence,
all of the material.
I wish we had videotaped it.
He changed colors.
You know, he went from white
to yellow to green to gray.
I mean, you know when
you're dead in the water,
and the facts were
just overwhelming.
And the only thing
I can tell the fans
is, I did not bet on baseball.
The agreement he signed with
the commissioner's office
in 1989 did not find that
Rose bet on baseball.
But right after the
deal was struck,
Bart Giamatti offered
his personal opinion
on the subject.
I am confronted by the
factual record of Mr. Dowd,
and on the basis of that,
yes, I have concluded
that he bet on baseball.
- Was there
- I know
Was there a smoking gun here
Wait a moment. No, wait.
Don't scream.
We're going to be here
all day if you want.
Just take it easy.
- Was there a smoking gun?
Bart said, Pete would have
had to reconfigure his life
in order to get the commissioner
to change his mind.
And he would have
had a lot of help.
We had doctors willing to
help, Gamblers Anonymous.
It's just, you have
to be honest first.
Rose remains confident that
if he reconfigures his life,
Giamatti's successor, Fay
Vincent, or his successor
eventually will show
leniency and reinstate
him into baseball.
Every case is a different case.
Every commissioner is a
different commissioner.
If Pete Rose had come forward
and said, look, Bart, I bet
on baseball, sure, you got me.
Look at all the evidence.
I can't deny it. I'm sorry.
I want to work for you.
I'll do anything you
want for a few years
I think that would have changed
the equation significantly.
Thank you.
Welcome back to "The
Pete Rose Show."
If you want to talk
about Joe Montana,
you want to talk about
hockey or basketball
And you still insist
you never bet baseball.
No, absolutely.
Gambling on baseball did not get
me in trouble because no one has
ever proved I bet on baseball.
I join millions of baseball fans
around the world in
hoping that someday soon,
someday very soon, Pete Rose
will be standing right here.
Pete Rose and Mike Schmidt came
to see you as commissioner.
- They did.
And
And Johnny Bench
and a few others.
Did he acknowledge guilt?
Not that day.
Are you willing to show
contrition, admit that you
bet on baseball, and make
some sort of an apology
to that effect?
Not at all, Jim.
Not at all.
I'm not going to admit
something that didn't happen.
With the overwhelming
evidence
No
that is in that
report, why not make
that step with this opening?
It's too much of a festive
night to worry about that.
I mean, I because
I don't know what
evidence you're talking about.
Yes, I did.
And that was my mistake, not
coming clean a lot earlier.
Has he been 100% truthful?
Well, that's very
different you mean with me?
I want baseball and
Pete Rose to be friends.
So I can say I'm not
an outsider looking in.
I got grandkids.
They want their grandpa to
be associated with baseball.
That's all.
I think realistically, a good
outcome is leaving the meeting
with a feeling that there
are steps in the process,
but that they're
open to doing it.
Why do it when he's no longer
around to make an impact?
It would sort of seem
unfortunately cruel
at that point.
Better give you
back your microphone
or they will think
that I'm wired.
They, like, pat me down.
Jeff's on a crusade
to get me reinstated.
And evidently he has pretty good
contacts at the
commissioner's office,
including the commissioner.
And if he makes it
sound to baseball
like it's going to help
baseball, he'll get it done.
Precedent is going
to matter to them.
And precedent is going to be
vitally important that you give
them a reason why
you should shift
or alter off that precedent.
70 years ago, eight players,
including Shoeless Joe Jackson,
banned from baseball for life
because they tried to fix
games in the World Series,
a series ultimately won
by, of all teams, Cincinnati.
Gambling has been
intertwined in baseball
since the very beginning.
The 1919 World Series is
synonymous with the White Sox,
or better known as the
Black Sox, who allegedly
threw the World Series.
Those eight men,
they did take money.
They were then
banned from baseball
permanently, including the
great Shoeless Joe Jackson.
And he was probably a
Hall of Fame player.
Because of his involvement
with the White Sox,
he is not enshrined
in Cooperstown.
I hate people who talk about me,
and they start talking
about Joe Jackson.
Joe Jackson was a
great player, OK?
But Joe Jackson took
money to throw a baseball
game in the World Series.
I bet on my own team to win.
Sorry, Joe.
I'll be up there soon.
You just hang in there.
We got some stories
to go over up there.
So there's a big difference
taking money to throw a game
or betting on your
own team to win.
Interesting, good meeting.
We got a very
positive reception.
Extremely professional.
Very nice.
And I am incredibly encouraged.
I think MLB and
the Hall have been
public with what type
of response and attitude
they want to see from Pete.
And I think if Pete wants
this during his lifetime,
or especially in the short term,
Pete has to participate in
it and show that he wants it.
Hey, Marty.
What?
What the hell is wrong with you?
You
you gotta to be the only
guy in the world whose wife
gets a fucking bobblehead.
Bobblehead.
She's a cottage industry
in her own right.
I know that.
She does TV
commercials and shit.
Come on, Pete.
Oh, it's good to
see you, though.
It's been a while.
- It is.
- You look good.
Thank you. So do you.
Still got them jugs, don't you?
You know, they're still
they're still a
part of me, yeah.
They haven't gone anywhere.
You're all sick.
You're all both still sick.
Old, sick, old men.
No, I'm joking.
One time we were sick young men.
24 years, he played
in the big leagues.
He retired with a .303
batting average in a lifetime.
He also happened to be
and still is today
in a record that
probably will never be broken.
And that is the all-time
hits leader with 4,256.
Please welcome Pete Rose!
How are you doing?
- Here we go.
- Wait a minute.
My phone is ringing.
It might be the commissioner.
Now you're gonna cut that phone.
That just put me
another 10 feet.
There's a famous
group in New York
City called the Friars Club.
Their motto was
and still is today
"We only roast
the ones we love."
Well, since Johnny Bench
couldn't be here tonight,
we got
- Oh.
Oh.
Yeah, but if Johnny
was here, you know,
he'd have half the crowd.
Ooh!
That's not fair.
Just kidding.
Pete, I'd be interested to
know the first impressions
from these two guys.
Griffey, of course, was
in the Reds organization,
came up through the system.
Foster, of course,
came to the Reds
from the San Francisco
Giants in one
of the great trades in the
history of this franchise.
Griff was Mr. Personality.
Everybody was happy.
Mr. Personality.
He was the mixer,
this kid over here.
You were the mixer. Yeah.
- Well, I
- You were the agitator.
You started all that
bullshit in the clubhouse.
I wouldn't have to do
anything like that, Pete.
I'm not going to
lie to them, Griff.
Pete.
This time.
What?
He's been waiting all
night to use that line.
I know.
Waiting all night to
use that damn line.
And we love to
heckle each other.
I mean, the better you play,
the more you got on your ass.
That was the Big Red Machine.
Batting first,
playing third base
he's had over 200
hits a season, seven
times number 14, Pete Rose.
You know, not many teams
have a nickname, but we did.
We all knew what our job was.
And we could do our
job like no one else.
And we did it
every freakin' day.
Swung on a looper down
the left field line.
That's going to be
in for a base hit.
Here's Rose taking a turn.
He'll settle for a single.
Low hit to right field.
No way Sanguillén can get him.
He couldn't get him
if he had a gun.
The Big Red Machine is
arguably the best team
ever assembled in baseball.
That was the center of
the baseball universe,
Riverfront Stadium in 1975.
To grow up in that area of
the country in the '70s with
Pete Rose, I mean, how fortunate
was I to be there for that?
In Cincinnati, the Reds
were a public trust.
That's where it all started.
They were the first
team in the 1860s.
And you felt it.
It's similar to the Packers.
You say "Green Bay,"
people go, Packers.
In those years, you said
"Cincinnati," people went Reds.
Base hit for Perez.
What I loved was the identity
that he gave us as a city
on the world stage.
The throw is not in time.
Cincinnati invented hustle.
I hear this all the time.
And that's what Cincinnati
sees itself as
as the hustle.
They just do everything right.
Pitch, hit, run, especially run.
Great base running team.
They're gonna go up against
a great young catcher.
Here it is, Joe Morgan.
The Reds win the National
League Championship.
It's going to be Boston and
Cincinnati for the World
Championship starting Saturday
in Boston, Little Fenway Park.
Well, Johnny Bench,
Tony Perez
First time I met Pete Rose
was at the '75 World Series,
the year I graduated
from college.
I was 21 at "The
Boston Globe."
So I was just thrilled
to have a credential.
I was kind of a runner for Peter
Gammons's copy or whatever.
But I got to meet him
behind the batting cage,
and he radiated
everything that he is.
You know, he was cocky and
confident and charming.
So if you were a Red
Sox fan, you hated him.
But if he were a Red
Sox, he would have
been a picture on our mantle
on every mantle in New England.
Good evening, everybody
around the world, Curt Gowdy
and Marty Brennaman.
Yes, there is a game
6 to the World Series.
We finally got a
break in the weather.
The northeaster that hung
around Boston for three days
has blown away.
Remember, the Reds need to win
tonight, and it's all over.
A Red Sox win would send
it into its final game
tomorrow night.
Well, the players
for three days,
what have they been thinking?
What have they been doing?
My memory was in
Fenway, you know,
when you imagine Pete
Rose at the plate,
you know, crouched like a kid
in the backyard or something,
and the fans would
yell, "Stand up!
Hit it like a man!"
Again, Armbrister on the
move, and Rose lines a base
hit to center field.
Armbrister will
try to go to third.
And Lynn
I have to say, that
was the greatest
World Series ever played.
Reds trail 3-0, but
they're threatening
with one out in the fifth.
And a fly ball deep
to center field.
Lynn going way back, way back.
And he can't make the play.
It's off the wall.
One run comes in.
Here comes Rose
with the second run.
And Freddie Lynn is first.
3-0, 3-3, 6-3, 6-6.
Last time I went up to bat,
I looked back at Carlton,
and I says, are you having fun?
I said, isn't this
isn't this a hoot,
playing a game like we are?
Bottom of the 12th inning.
6 runs, 14 hits, no
errors for Cincinnati.
6 runs, 9 hits, 1
error for Boston.
And Fisk will lead it off.
Has a single and
has walked twice.
He's been on base three times.
Here's Fisk.
There it goes.
A long drive.
If it stays fair, home run!
We will have a seventh game
in this 1975 World Series.
Carlton Fisk becomes
the first player
in this series to hit one
over the wall into the net.
Red Sox win it 7
to 6 in 12 innings.
How many steps
did he take? One?
He waits to see it.
Get over! Get over!
He knew it.
There it is.
I tell you, one of
the more dramatic home
runs in World Series history.
And there is Tom Yawkey
I remember when we
got beat in game 6,
Sparky was in the clubhouse.
He looked at me, and he said,
Big Red Machine, my ass.
How do you guys blow that game?
I said, Spark, Spark, did you
see that celebration they had?
That's game 6.
They got to come back tomorrow.
Another game tonight.
It's one season right
down to one game.
Good luck to you.
All the money is
on the line, and
all the glory is on the line.
And we're playing for
them diamond rings.
And we just hope
that we can Bill Lee.
He's a tough pitcher.
And they got to get Don
Gullett, who's tough.
Ball 4.
He's on again.
Base hit right here.
Carbo scores.
3 and 0 pitch.
Ball 4.
Another run across.
Red Sox lead 3-0 as
Yastrzemski scores.
In that World Series
game 7, the Red Sox
take a 3-run lead early on.
But people always remember
that game for the eephus pitch.
Oh, there it is.
Slow eephus curveball.
Perez wanted nothing of it.
Which was the third time Bill
Lee threw it to Tony Perez
in that World Series.
Tony said that when
he threw that pitch,
there was a little
hesitation when his leg
kicked forward and landed.
And he made Tony look silly.
And Tony remembered that.
And if you've ever
wondered what it looks
like from a sportscaster's
advantage
Right there.
Now, here we go with Pete
Rose at the top of the order
in the sixth inning.
There's a base hit by
Rose into right field.
And the third fourth inning
in a row the Reds have had
their leadoff batter get on.
A lot of people don't understand
how important every play is.
Johnny Bench has grounded out.
Flying out to deep
center. Ball up short.
They've got one
and turn it over.
Wild throw by Doyle
into the dugouts.
They had the double play,
and Doyle threw it away.
We were down 3 runs.
And I go into second
and hit Denny Doyle.
Now watch Denny.
He knows Pete Rose is coming.
And Rose called this wild throw.
Pete broke up the
play and, of course,
almost crippled Denny Doyle.
And Doyle has been charged
with his second error
of the night.
Bench winds up at second.
2 down.
Tony Perez up, is grounded
out and popped up.
Red Sox ahead
Tony Perez, he saw that
little hesitation that he had
noticed those other two times.
And he said, this is it.
He's thrown me he's thrown
me that damn thing again.
There's his blooper pitch.
There it is.
A high drive. He was
waiting for that one.
That one is gone,
over everything.
And now we have another 1-run
ball game in this World Series.
That was a tape
measured home run.
Red Sox fans have not
gotten over that yet.
Reds threatening in the seventh.
2 down.
Now the switch-hitting
Pete Rose is coming up.
There's a line shot to center.
Here's a man rounding third.
Here comes the throw.
It is not in time.
The other runners advance.
And the Reds have tied it.
So if I don't break
that double play up,
you know, we don't
ever tie that game.
There's a looper. It drops.
It's in for a hit.
Here comes the throw to third.
Rose hits the dirt.
He's safe.
And there goes Morgan
down to second.
And the Reds have
the lead 4 to 3,
as Joe Morgan blooped a
base hit into center field.
It never happens to some people.
I don't think Ernie Banks
ever won a World Series.
You have to experience
taking that trophy
and holding it up like that
to know what it feels like.
Top of the ninth inning.
He put the Reds ahead.
There's a high fly ball.
It should be all over.
Gerónimo's under.
And Cincinnati has won
the World Championship,
beating the Boston
Red Sox 4 to 3.
The Reds win it in Fenway Park.
They wanted this one badly
after winning 108 times
this year.
One of the best World
Series of modern times
for the baseball
fans of America.
You know, to the casual
observer of baseball,
the moment of the '75
series that's etched in all
of our minds is Carlton
Fisk's, you know, stay fair,
running down, winning game 6.
But the Reds won.
The Reds won that World Series.
I just want to remind everybody.
You can't win in game 6.
I'm sorry.
You know, just because he's
doing this here doesn't mean
they won the World Series.
But we we explained
that to them quickly.
Joe, for the 115th
time this season,
this one belongs to the
Reds. And it was a big one.
Right on.
This is the biggest one
I've ever played in, Marty.
We come from behind. It
looked like we were dead.
But we never die.
This is an
unbelievable ball club.
And I'm just so happy, man.
I can't tell you how much.
And Pete Rose is unbelievable.
He got all the clutch hits
every time we needed one.
I know Bench raised the trophy.
Morgan raised the trophy.
Perez raised the trophy.
Concepción did.
But when I raised the
trophy, it meant more to me
than anybody else because,
hey, I was born there.
I couldn't be happier
if I had all the money
in the world and everything.
This is the happiest
moment of my life.
I'm scared I'm going
to have a coronary.
I really
- Pete, congratulations.
- For everybody.
- Peter!
Here's Clay Carroll.
You can say I didn't respect
the game when I bet on it.
And you're probably right.
But however, up till that time,
as far as playing the game,
I played the game right.
I'm going to tell
you right now, OK?
You can put this on
the camera right there.
I put it on the field in
front of millions of people
that I love the
game of baseball.
And that's a fact.
We're happy to be back
here as world champions.
We hope you love us
because we love you,
because you helped make
Cincinnati the baseball
capital of the world.
Thank you.
Pete Rose! Pete Rose!
Pete Rose! Pete Rose!
Pete Rose!
You guys should interview my son
while you're in Cincinnati.
We're going to
interview your son.
I want to interview your son.
I want to talk about him.
He he lived it.
He definitely lived it.
And he had a long
career as Pete Rose Jr.
Got 2,000 hits in the minors.
2,000.
That's a lot of fucking hits.
He got fucked because of me.
You know, when I got in
trouble, a lot of people
took it out on him in the
minor league stadiums.
So that's how cruel
people could be.
It's tough to follow
a guy like me.
Everyone ready?
We are ready and speeding.
Always one last thing.
What's your T-stop over there?
I'm at a 2.
Let's go down to 1.5.
I'm at a 4.5.
We're good.
0.1.
Yeah, whatever it takes.
- All right.
What's going on today?
Let me know what your
life's like today.
You in baseball today?
No, I'm retired.
I'm a full-time father,
just a normal
a normal person, which is good.
I was a baseball
player for 21 years
and then managed for
another seven or eight.
May get back in
maybe in the future
once the kids are
up and out of here.
But just kind of nice
to be a normal guy.
I'm a Rose.
My idol is number 14.
I knew what I was going
to do at a young age,
or what I wanted to do.
But the reason I wanted to do it
was because I always wanted
to be at my dad's side.
So but it was normal.
It was normal, and it
was a great childhood.
You know, when I was growing up,
hard-nosed, can't
cry in front of Dad.
My sister couldn't
cry in front of Dad.
You know, if we lost,
we had to walk home.
We couldn't eat.
I'm just joking.
But we didn't move.
We stayed here.
I went to school here.
I was known as Pete.
I wasn't known as
Pete Rose's son.
You know, everybody
knew me as Pete.
The only difference was and
it was great we got to go
to the ballpark every night.
I got to put my uniform on.
And as a little kid,
you can ask him,
but I had to have
stitched in uniform.
I had to be exactly like my dad.
Wore batting gloves to school.
Took my glove to school.
I wore turf shoes to prom.
Come on.
I remember being really
jealous of Pete Rose Jr.
Because I'd see him as a batboy,
and I was like, how come he
gets to be in the dugout?
He's got his name on
the back of his jersey.
I want a jersey.
Want my name on the
back of a Reds jersey.
It helps to know a player.
You'd have Pete Jr.,
Eduardo and Victor Perez
And Ken Griffey Jr., and
they're just running around.
We lived in the clubhouse.
And Sparky Anderson would
actually get the kids together
and would tell us the rules.
If the team wins, you're
allowed in the clubhouse
after the game.
If the team loses, you're
not allowed in the clubhouse
after the game.
We had to watch the game.
And then we had to
yell at the umpires.
So what did that create?
Kids up in the stands
rooting for their old men
to win the game
because they wanted
to come into the clubhouse.
The clubhouse was fun.
That was a big
advantage for the sons.
Luckily for us, in the
'70s, the Reds won a lot.
It's World Series
time in baseball,
the culmination of the
six-month baseball season.
And this year's 1976 World
Series, the New York Yankees
and the Cincinnati Reds.
Here's Joe Morgan.
Morgan hit .320, 27 home
runs, 111 runs batted in,
stole 60 bases in 69 attempts.
Come on, Joe, hit
one out of here.
Uh-oh.
There she goes!
Deep to right field.
Could be out of here.
1-0 Cincinnati.
Base hit left field.
We're going to have a race.
Here comes Griffey.
Here comes the throw.
Cincinnati wins it 4 to 3.
Uh-oh.
That is that is gone.
Man, that ball
jumped out of here.
How easy he made that look.
Dan Driessen.
Deep to left field.
Get out of here!
Home run.
It's a home run, as Johnny Bench
has just hit his second
home run of the night,
a 3-run homer.
The Cincinnati Reds win the
World Series in four straight.
It was a sweep.
The final score, Cincinnati
7, the New York Yankees 2.
Pete.
Hey, congratulations.
You repeated.
You proved you can play with
anybody and maybe any team
in the history of baseball.
It's a great ball club,
a great bunch of guys.
You got to give credit
to Bench tonight.
He swung the bat
in the whole series
and hit two home runs tonight.
But it's tough to
win two in a row.
And here we are, and
we're just very happy.
Better club than last year?
Oh, this is the best
club in 14 years
I've been associated
with at Cincinnati.
And I think it was
strictly a team
It felt like my dad is
a superhero, period.
But, you know, we never
looked at it that way.
But now looking
back on it, I mean,
you can understand on why
he was such a big deal here.
Midnight last night, the
Cincinnati Reds within the
hour had won their second
straight World Series victory.
The Reds got little if any
sleep before they reported
to Riverfront at 11:30 for
the parade and Fountain
Square program in their honor.
He's our guy.
If you're from here, if
you're a true Cincinnatian,
you know, he's our Babe Ruth.
I mean, that's the
only way to put it.
If Yankee Stadium was the
house that Ruth built,
it is no exaggeration to
say that Riverfront Stadium
is the house that Rose built.
Pete Rose is one of those
rare individuals who
has transcended
his sport and has
become a piece of Americana.
Charlie Hustle is surely an
inspiration for the young
and the young at heart.
This Cincinnati restaurant
carries the Pete Rose name.
He doesn't own it, but
gets a small royalty
on total food sales.
When I made the big leagues,
I got a $7,000 bonus
when I signed with the Reds.
And I won Rookie of the
Year, and I jumped that
all the way up to $12,000.
Then I jumped that
up to $46,000.
Then I jumped that
up to $150,000.
The phone rings all
the time in my house.
Do this commercial,
do that commercial,
and do this commercial.
And I don't go out
soliciting commercials.
They call me.
I don't call them.
He has the usual
millionaire toys, more
money tied up in
wheels than most men
earn in three or four years.
It got to the point where,
hey, I made enough money,
I can do what I want to do.
Pete, for example, is a
great humanitarian, you know,
with kids.
Football, baseball,
basketball, and hockey.
He taught those kids
how to bet on them all.
No.
I couldn't see it
overtaking his life.
He loved it.
So did a lot of people.
It's estimated that $30
billion, $30 billion,
is bet illegally each
year in this country
on sporting events, a lot
of it bet on pro football.
Instead of Jimmy the Greek,
we're going to have to go
with Peter the Irishman today.
All right, up to you now, Rose.
Tampa Bay against the Giants.
How about those Buccaneers?
They're for real.
And they're going to win today.
- They're going to win easy
This is the first time they've
ever been favored on
the road in the history
of the franchise.
Where did you get
all that stuff?
You're pretty good.
I follow football pretty good.
Tampa Bay will win today.
All right, now the rest of the
schedule, you agree with
Were you betting
baseball at the time?
I don't remember.
What about football?
I you know what?
I really sure, I bet on
football, Sunday football.
I used to think
Monday night football
was to get even for Sunday.
But did you feel like
what you were doing
was OK because
other people knew?
That's what I'm asking.
Well, I thought what I
was what I was doing,
most guys were doing.
Calling up a bookmaker and
betting on Sunday night
football or Monday
night football,
that's not going
to affect my job.
Ever since he arrived in
the majors 15 years ago,
attention has constantly
focused on Pete Rose.
With the media, if he liked you
or if he recognized the name of
your publication, he was great.
I was covering baseball
for "Sports Illustrated."
So I saw him a lot.
Now, his remarkable
consecutive game
hitting streak has
magnified the attention
like never before.
Pete Rose hit safely in his 33rd
straight game last night and
goes for number 34 tonight.
He's got it. It's in there.
It's there!
All right!
Number 35 and an RBI!
Pete Rose is
continually blessed.
Rose's streak also put
considerable attention
on the man he was
chasing, Tommy Holmes,
who set the National
League mark of 37 in 1945.
Line drive, base hit left field,
and Pete Rose has broken
the record of Tommy Holmes.
Number 38.
And they're going wild at Shea.
And he gets a standing
ovation from a crowd that
has swelled because of him.
It just so happened the Mets had
Tommy Holmes on their payroll.
And they trotted Tommy
out onto the field,
and there was a ceremony.
Pete offered him the ball.
And there goes Tommy
Holmes down to first base.
There is Tommy Holmes.
And what a thrilling
moment this is.
It was the kind of
generous gesture
that Pete Rose would make in
recognition and appreciation
for old baseball.
Tommy Holmes said
to Pete last night,
"Thanks for bringing me
back to the Major Leagues."
That's about the time that
you got every major sports
publication in the
country following
the club game by game.
Hello, everybody.
This is Atlanta-Fulton
County Stadium,
where one of the
biggest Atlanta Braves
crowds of the entire
year has turned
out to follow one of the
biggest sports stories
of recent years.
They were here en
masse to watch Pete
Rose take batting practice.
If he can get a hit tonight,
he will tie the all-time
National League record
of 44, which was compiled
in 1897 by Wee Willie Keeler.
Hard hit ball.
Past the second
baseman Gilbreath.
And Pete Rose has
done it, a base hit
in the 44th consecutive game.
And everyone in Atlanta
Stadium is on their feet.
People hung on every at bat.
The fans would cheer him
and root for their own team,
but they would always
cheer Pete Rose.
And now there is only
one number, one name
left as a goal for Pete Rose
56 games, Joe DiMaggio, 1941.
Obviously, Joe DiMaggio
holds the all-time record,
56, in the modern era.
You were up in the
40s at one time.
How lucky do you have to be?
Can you put it in context?
Yeah, because when
the streak ended
in Atlanta against Gene
Garber and McWilliams,
I hit two seeds.
There's a ball hit right
back to McWilliams.
And he stabs at it and gets it,
and he stops Pete Rose there.
He lines it right at Horner.
And Horner will get the double
play because Dave Collins
Baseball's a lucky game.
There's eight guys out there
with this rag on their hand
trying to catch the ball.
Listen to this ovation for Rose.
It's a standing ovation.
In other words, what
these fans are saying,
hit or no hit,
Pete, we love you.
Here it is.
He's up for his last turn.
He's got to do it right here,
or his streak is broken.
He bunts.
Foul.
Boy, you could feel it.
Now the 0-1.
Ball inside.
1 ball, 1 strike.
I was looking at
that last at-bat.
Did you did you have
a pitch to hit there?
No.
Inside.
2 and 1.
A walk kills it, too.
You got to remember, I
think I'm right about this,
but the score was 16 to 4.
I didn't expect
Gene Garber to throw
me one right down Broadway
in the express lane, OK?
However, if I'd have
went up without a bat,
I'd have walked on four pitches.
31,000 on their feet yelling.
His streak in danger.
Now the 2-2.
No good!
Miss!
Rose's streak is broken!
The Braves win!
And Rose is getting
another standing ovation!
Rose strikes
I was a little surprised.
I guess Garber's
got a job to do.
But he pitched to me like
it was the seventh game
of the World Series.
Do you feel relieved?
No, I feel pissed off.
That's how I feel.
Yeah.
I just went 0 for 4,
and we got beat 16 to 4.
I don't feel relieved
about anything.
Are you anxious to
start another streak?
Yeah, I sure am.
What we got left now?
56 games.
That's what we got
left on the season now.
Yeah.
I wouldn't want to do that.
I would go crazy all winter.
- Hey.
- Jeffrey.
- Pete.
- How are you, my man?
- Good to see you.
- Have a seat.
Thanks for coming.
You look good.
You lost weight.
Did you ever go
to the eye doctor?
I'm getting cataract
surgery on the 21st.
You are?
Yeah.
When you were
playing, did they ever
tell you what your vision was?
- 15/20.
- Really?
Yeah. I had great eyes.
You ever see my girlfriends?
You agree with me.
Give me some skin.
I love that.
So I spoke to Major League
Baseball about you this week.
- Did they answer?
- They did.
OK.
You know, Baseball essentially
said what they want is
in this final step is they'd
like to hear from fellow Hall
of Famers who support you.
So are there 8, 9, 10 guys
that we can just easily call?
Like, Frank said he'd
do it in in a second.
Sure, he would.
I'm sure Perez would do it, too.
I'm sure
So I think that's what we need.
I would legitimately
I'm sure Schmidt would do it.
I can't think of guys
who wouldn't do it.
OK, so so I want to move
Hey, it's been 33 years.
I know, I know.
I think we're there.
It'll be a monster story.
People people want this.
How in the world did you first
meet or come across Pete?
Well, I loved Pete as a kid.
And then years later, I
thought about him often.
I had not even met him.
And I was talking to my
buddy who worked for Fox.
And we were talking
about his baseball shows.
And I said to him, you
know, you need personality
on those shows,
someone who really is
going to drive the audience.
And we thought about
just randomly Pete Rose.
I got one serious
question to ask.
I'd like to ask Alex,
after you pass Babe Ruth
and decide to retire
in a couple of years,
and after you buy Fox, will
you keep Frank and I on?
As far as what's more
conducive to pitching,
but I don't think
this is an issue.
But we saw it with Kershaw.
They were they're going
to go to the bullpen.
What? What?
Talk to me.
- He's just
He's being Pete.
That's just Pete,
just doing his thing.
At first, it was like
unfreezing someone from, like,
a thousand years ago and putting
them in a work environment
that they have never been in.
Pete, you were
trending on Twitter.
And one of the real fun parts
about it was this this photo.
And you got to give the Fox
people credit because not only
did they have the
vision to do it,
the show, for when he was
on it, was wildly successful
and won the Emmy.
Why did it stop?
Why isn't he still a
personality on Fox?
No, it's a great question.
And there's a real
simple answer for it,
in that Pete got into a
fight sort of publicly
with John Dowd from
the Dowd Report.
And Dowd alleged that Pete
had been involved in scandals
with underage women.
Pete denied any of that.
The case began last year
when Pete Rose sued former Major
League Baseball investigator
John Dowd for defaming him with
false statements, including
allegations that Rose
repeatedly committed statutory
rape and ran with 12-
to 14-year-old girls.
Dowd, the man hired by Major
League Baseball in 1989
to investigate Pete Rose,
made a startling statement
during a radio
interview two years ago.
You know, there's a lot
of other activities.
Michael Bertolini,
you know, told us
that he not only ran
bets, but he ran young
girls for him down in spring
training, ages 12 to 14.
Isn't that lovely?
So that's statutory rape
every time you do that.
Come on, come on, come on.
Come on.
- Are you doing all right?
Hands off, buddy.
Come on. Come on.
To be honest with you,
that's 150% untrue.
My wife was always
in spring training.
I didn't bring young
girls to spring training.
I don't think John
Dowd said that.
I I know he didn't say that.
Well, what he says on the radio.
But, you know, John Dowd is
he's a prosecutor.
He's a prosecutor that,
I made him famous.
Now, in the court filing today,
Dowd provided a sworn
statement from a woman who
claims she met Rose in
1973 when she was 14 or 15
and started a
sexual relationship
that lasted several years.
Pete Rose, also
in court filings,
acknowledges he had a
consensual sexual relationship
with the woman, but not
until she was 16 years old,
the legal age of
consent in Ohio.
She she was within
the range of her age.
So who gives a shit?
Well, first of all, I don't
I don't ever remember going
out with a 16-year-old.
18, yes. 18.
But don't forget, I'm not
50 or 60 when I'm going
out with this 18-year-old.
There's probably a
lot of guys in this
room that are 28 to 30 that
date 18- and 19-year-olds.
I would think so.
Dowd's lawyers say that if
Rose did not want to answer
questions about having
sex with teenagers,
his well-documented
history of lying,
or his mental
health, he should not
have filed this lawsuit.
Fox was dealing with a lot
of PR issues from Me Too.
He shouldn't have pursued it.
But Fox had no options
but to take that brewing
scandal off the air.
OK.
So you think
because of my power,
I got an 18-year-old girl?
Is that what you're saying?
I I don't know.
I mean, those are the
kind of people who are
never going to reinstate you.
I know what kind
of player I was.
My fans know what
kind of player I was.
It looks as if you're
not going to play
for Cincinnati next year.
It looks that way.
My contract ended after the
last game of the season.
And I don't think I
should be at the top
of my profession and be
15th or 16th in payroll.
- Is that where you are now?
- That's where I am now.
It just don't make
any sense to me.
It occurs to me maybe
they think Pete Rose
wouldn't leave Cincinnati.
I mean, here's Pete
Rose, a neighborhood kid,
grew up in Cincinnati, right?
I got my car packed.
You're ready to move, huh?
Got my Rolls Royce packed, man.
What kind of team would
you like to play for?
If you could pick maybe
not a specific team,
what kind of a team do you want?
- Where are you from?
- Philadelphia.
Oh, man, that's a good team.
You'd like to play
for the Phillies, huh?
You said that, I didn't.
Honestly, no we could
trade Mike wait,
we'll trade Mike Schmidt
- No.
There was an undercurrent
of understanding
that there were people
in the Reds organization
that did not like him.
They didn't like
Pete's flamboyant style
of living that had nothing
to do with the way he
played the game.
They maintained that he
was a selfish player.
But to say he was a selfish
player was ridiculous.
I mean, it couldn't
have been more so.
So and that was the
way they were positioning
themselves to let him leave.
I don't know that they made
him a decent offer here.
In the winter, Pete
Rose went through
an extraordinary negotiation
with half a dozen teams.
The bidding went crazy.
Atlanta, for example, was
willing to pay a million
dollars a year for four years.
Other teams flashed
beer distributorships
and thoroughbred horses at him.
Pete Rose was such a landmark,
many residents were outraged
the Reds wouldn't do whatever
it took to keep him here.
Well, St. Louis wouldn't
trade Stan Musial.
The Yankees wouldn't
trade Mickey Mantle.
I don't think we should
let Pete Rose go.
Pete Rose broke
my heart as a kid.
Seeing him leave, I just
couldn't imagine how
my idol was going to leave.
I mean, he's from Cincinnati.
He grew up in Cincinnati.
He is Cincinnati.
How can he leave?
The former Cincinnati Reds
star, now a free agent,
signed a four-year,
$3.2 million contract,
making him the highest paid
player in baseball history.
Rose says he likes
Philadelphia because he thinks
that with his
injection of talent,
the team will be a cinch
for the World Series.
Was there any other thing
that could have been
behind wanting him to leave?
There may and I say
may because I don't know,
but I heard it after the fact.
They were concerned about the
people that he hung out with.
And they were concerned
about the possibility
that he may have been involved
in gambling back then.
Is there any way
baseball knew that you
were gambling already?
Yeah, I think they did.
I think they did somewhat.
Because I sit here
and I think, you
got a hometown kid that's really
setting the records on fire.
Why do you get rid of him?
Why do you get rid of
him for the '79 season
after what I did in '78?
OK. Good?
All right.
You know, just when
you're talking,
look at me and not there.
OK.
We'll be back in one second.
Can you get it?
Yeah.
OK.
- OK.
You know, Pete was
everything to me.
Not only my he was like a guy
that I looked up to as my idol.
He's bigger than life.
And he was like a dad.
You know, I listened to him.
Tommy Gioiosa was so
close to Pete Rose
that Rose took him into
his own home to live
and took him to the racetrack
to place Rose's bets.
We went to the track
probably every night.
If we missed a night,
it was unusual.
Tommy Gioiosa told "Vanity
Fair Magazine" in 2001
that Rose bet on his own team
and financed drug deals to pay
off huge gambling debts,
including a deal that landed
Gioiosa in federal prison.
From the day one when
I was with Pete Rose,
I always would go to
the racetracks with him
and bet basketball and football.
And then the addiction
got out of control.
He was losing lots of monies in
basketball and stuff like that.
And he started betting baseball.
You probably knew
it was wrong to do.
- Sure.
- Maybe you thought
Well, I didn't do it
when I was a player.
Yes.
But don't forget, a couple of
years, I was a player manager.
Yes.
And we're talking
like, right now,
we're talking about 1978.
- Right.
- So there was a rumor in '78.
Some people don't like you.
And they start rumors of
anything they want to say,
they say.
And not a darn thing
you could do about it.
Yeah, but despite the
rumors, at some point,
you did switch, right?
You did something happened in
you that you said, I actually
now I'm going to
bet on baseball.
What was the moment
I tell you what.
You must really think
I'm a fucking genius.
Do you remember
what you did in '78?
Do you remember
what you did in '82?
I don't remember
what I did last week.
And what's your next
stupid question?
Oh, I got a few more.
Is this the kind of doc that
are you going to try to
make me look a certain way?
No.
Just trying to
understand Pete Rose.
Not the legend, just
the human being.
Just the guy who puts
his pants on every day.
But I don't wear
underwear, though.
Oh, that's it for me, man.
The greatest of all time.
The greatest of all
time right there, baby.
- Hello, Mr. Rose.
- Hi.
- How are you?
- How are you?
- Good.
- How are you?
- Good, good.
- And you?
Nice to see y'all.
Hi, how are you?
- How are you, Pete?
Hey, how are you?
Man, you guys know I
got bad fucking knees.
Where am I walking?
Down to the stadium?
Why not?
We welcome to the
Hard Rock four people
who need no introduction, and
yet I'm going to do it anyway.
Of course you know,
nearest to me, Pete Rose,
of course, George
Foster, Ken Griffey Sr.,
and Marty Brennaman.
Pete, we'll start with you.
If you were manager of the
Reds, finish this sentence
"If I were manager of
the Reds, I would"
Go to church every day.
I don't know whose
fault it is down there.
It'll boil down to the players,
but I can't blame the manager.
I mean, you know, when I
managed the Reds for all
those years, I
never thought I sent
the wrong guy up to pinch hit.
I never thought I brought the
wrong guy in to face the hitter
that was in the batter's box.
But it doesn't always work out.
What makes a good manager?
One thing.
Does anybody know what it is?
Good players.
You're only as good as
the guy in front of you
or the guy behind you.
Ladies and gentlemen,
the greatest player
in the history of
baseball, Pete Rose.
Batting first and
playing left field,
number 14, Pete Rose.
One of the game's
greatest players
has engaged in a variety of acts
which have stained the game.
That's what I
think of Pete Rose.
Boo!
Mr. Rose has
accepted baseball's
ultimate sanction, which
is lifetime ineligibility.
Yeah, it's a tough case.
I mean, you know,
it's a tough one,
but a big injury if
he had you know,
with the reconstructive.
I mean, Chris is a highly
capable senior guy,
so he knows what to do.
But I'll I'll join soon also.
OK.
All right, I'll see you later.
Thanks.
Me? Yeah.
I'm meeting with Dan Halem,
who is the second in command.
I have been pursuing
meetings with MLB
on Pete for about two years.
And this is the end result
of that pursuit of getting
a discussion now timely
about the reinstatement issue
and how they view it.
I haven't pursued reinstatement
for a lot of people.
Rose has been declared
permanently ineligible
to participate in baseball.
But under the rules of
Major League Baseball,
he has the right to apply for
reinstatement in one year.
My life is baseball.
I hope to get back into baseball
as soon as I possibly can.
Pete is a unique
character in that
a lot of what he's
gone through in life
was sort of self-inflicted.
I don't think I have a
gambling problem at all.
I had a couple of really good
attorneys that said, nope,
don't admit you bet on anything.
I didn't think they
had any kind of proof,
and that's what I did.
Giamatti based his
decision on two things
evidence of the
commissioned report
by Special Investigator
John Dowd and the lack
of a formal defense by Rose.
Dowd was a professional
prosecutor.
He brought down mafia people.
They had gathered all the
information they needed
within a couple of weeks.
As he tells the story, he
talked to Rose himself.
He showed Rose's lawyers
all of the evidence,
all of the material.
I wish we had videotaped it.
He changed colors.
You know, he went from white
to yellow to green to gray.
I mean, you know when
you're dead in the water,
and the facts were
just overwhelming.
And the only thing
I can tell the fans
is, I did not bet on baseball.
The agreement he signed with
the commissioner's office
in 1989 did not find that
Rose bet on baseball.
But right after the
deal was struck,
Bart Giamatti offered
his personal opinion
on the subject.
I am confronted by the
factual record of Mr. Dowd,
and on the basis of that,
yes, I have concluded
that he bet on baseball.
- Was there
- I know
Was there a smoking gun here
Wait a moment. No, wait.
Don't scream.
We're going to be here
all day if you want.
Just take it easy.
- Was there a smoking gun?
Bart said, Pete would have
had to reconfigure his life
in order to get the commissioner
to change his mind.
And he would have
had a lot of help.
We had doctors willing to
help, Gamblers Anonymous.
It's just, you have
to be honest first.
Rose remains confident that
if he reconfigures his life,
Giamatti's successor, Fay
Vincent, or his successor
eventually will show
leniency and reinstate
him into baseball.
Every case is a different case.
Every commissioner is a
different commissioner.
If Pete Rose had come forward
and said, look, Bart, I bet
on baseball, sure, you got me.
Look at all the evidence.
I can't deny it. I'm sorry.
I want to work for you.
I'll do anything you
want for a few years
I think that would have changed
the equation significantly.
Thank you.
Welcome back to "The
Pete Rose Show."
If you want to talk
about Joe Montana,
you want to talk about
hockey or basketball
And you still insist
you never bet baseball.
No, absolutely.
Gambling on baseball did not get
me in trouble because no one has
ever proved I bet on baseball.
I join millions of baseball fans
around the world in
hoping that someday soon,
someday very soon, Pete Rose
will be standing right here.
Pete Rose and Mike Schmidt came
to see you as commissioner.
- They did.
And
And Johnny Bench
and a few others.
Did he acknowledge guilt?
Not that day.
Are you willing to show
contrition, admit that you
bet on baseball, and make
some sort of an apology
to that effect?
Not at all, Jim.
Not at all.
I'm not going to admit
something that didn't happen.
With the overwhelming
evidence
No
that is in that
report, why not make
that step with this opening?
It's too much of a festive
night to worry about that.
I mean, I because
I don't know what
evidence you're talking about.
Yes, I did.
And that was my mistake, not
coming clean a lot earlier.
Has he been 100% truthful?
Well, that's very
different you mean with me?
I want baseball and
Pete Rose to be friends.
So I can say I'm not
an outsider looking in.
I got grandkids.
They want their grandpa to
be associated with baseball.
That's all.
I think realistically, a good
outcome is leaving the meeting
with a feeling that there
are steps in the process,
but that they're
open to doing it.
Why do it when he's no longer
around to make an impact?
It would sort of seem
unfortunately cruel
at that point.
Better give you
back your microphone
or they will think
that I'm wired.
They, like, pat me down.
Jeff's on a crusade
to get me reinstated.
And evidently he has pretty good
contacts at the
commissioner's office,
including the commissioner.
And if he makes it
sound to baseball
like it's going to help
baseball, he'll get it done.
Precedent is going
to matter to them.
And precedent is going to be
vitally important that you give
them a reason why
you should shift
or alter off that precedent.
70 years ago, eight players,
including Shoeless Joe Jackson,
banned from baseball for life
because they tried to fix
games in the World Series,
a series ultimately won
by, of all teams, Cincinnati.
Gambling has been
intertwined in baseball
since the very beginning.
The 1919 World Series is
synonymous with the White Sox,
or better known as the
Black Sox, who allegedly
threw the World Series.
Those eight men,
they did take money.
They were then
banned from baseball
permanently, including the
great Shoeless Joe Jackson.
And he was probably a
Hall of Fame player.
Because of his involvement
with the White Sox,
he is not enshrined
in Cooperstown.
I hate people who talk about me,
and they start talking
about Joe Jackson.
Joe Jackson was a
great player, OK?
But Joe Jackson took
money to throw a baseball
game in the World Series.
I bet on my own team to win.
Sorry, Joe.
I'll be up there soon.
You just hang in there.
We got some stories
to go over up there.
So there's a big difference
taking money to throw a game
or betting on your
own team to win.
Interesting, good meeting.
We got a very
positive reception.
Extremely professional.
Very nice.
And I am incredibly encouraged.
I think MLB and
the Hall have been
public with what type
of response and attitude
they want to see from Pete.
And I think if Pete wants
this during his lifetime,
or especially in the short term,
Pete has to participate in
it and show that he wants it.
Hey, Marty.
What?
What the hell is wrong with you?
You
you gotta to be the only
guy in the world whose wife
gets a fucking bobblehead.
Bobblehead.
She's a cottage industry
in her own right.
I know that.
She does TV
commercials and shit.
Come on, Pete.
Oh, it's good to
see you, though.
It's been a while.
- It is.
- You look good.
Thank you. So do you.
Still got them jugs, don't you?
You know, they're still
they're still a
part of me, yeah.
They haven't gone anywhere.
You're all sick.
You're all both still sick.
Old, sick, old men.
No, I'm joking.
One time we were sick young men.
24 years, he played
in the big leagues.
He retired with a .303
batting average in a lifetime.
He also happened to be
and still is today
in a record that
probably will never be broken.
And that is the all-time
hits leader with 4,256.
Please welcome Pete Rose!
How are you doing?
- Here we go.
- Wait a minute.
My phone is ringing.
It might be the commissioner.
Now you're gonna cut that phone.
That just put me
another 10 feet.
There's a famous
group in New York
City called the Friars Club.
Their motto was
and still is today
"We only roast
the ones we love."
Well, since Johnny Bench
couldn't be here tonight,
we got
- Oh.
Oh.
Yeah, but if Johnny
was here, you know,
he'd have half the crowd.
Ooh!
That's not fair.
Just kidding.
Pete, I'd be interested to
know the first impressions
from these two guys.
Griffey, of course, was
in the Reds organization,
came up through the system.
Foster, of course,
came to the Reds
from the San Francisco
Giants in one
of the great trades in the
history of this franchise.
Griff was Mr. Personality.
Everybody was happy.
Mr. Personality.
He was the mixer,
this kid over here.
You were the mixer. Yeah.
- Well, I
- You were the agitator.
You started all that
bullshit in the clubhouse.
I wouldn't have to do
anything like that, Pete.
I'm not going to
lie to them, Griff.
Pete.
This time.
What?
He's been waiting all
night to use that line.
I know.
Waiting all night to
use that damn line.
And we love to
heckle each other.
I mean, the better you play,
the more you got on your ass.
That was the Big Red Machine.
Batting first,
playing third base
he's had over 200
hits a season, seven
times number 14, Pete Rose.
You know, not many teams
have a nickname, but we did.
We all knew what our job was.
And we could do our
job like no one else.
And we did it
every freakin' day.
Swung on a looper down
the left field line.
That's going to be
in for a base hit.
Here's Rose taking a turn.
He'll settle for a single.
Low hit to right field.
No way Sanguillén can get him.
He couldn't get him
if he had a gun.
The Big Red Machine is
arguably the best team
ever assembled in baseball.
That was the center of
the baseball universe,
Riverfront Stadium in 1975.
To grow up in that area of
the country in the '70s with
Pete Rose, I mean, how fortunate
was I to be there for that?
In Cincinnati, the Reds
were a public trust.
That's where it all started.
They were the first
team in the 1860s.
And you felt it.
It's similar to the Packers.
You say "Green Bay,"
people go, Packers.
In those years, you said
"Cincinnati," people went Reds.
Base hit for Perez.
What I loved was the identity
that he gave us as a city
on the world stage.
The throw is not in time.
Cincinnati invented hustle.
I hear this all the time.
And that's what Cincinnati
sees itself as
as the hustle.
They just do everything right.
Pitch, hit, run, especially run.
Great base running team.
They're gonna go up against
a great young catcher.
Here it is, Joe Morgan.
The Reds win the National
League Championship.
It's going to be Boston and
Cincinnati for the World
Championship starting Saturday
in Boston, Little Fenway Park.
Well, Johnny Bench,
Tony Perez
First time I met Pete Rose
was at the '75 World Series,
the year I graduated
from college.
I was 21 at "The
Boston Globe."
So I was just thrilled
to have a credential.
I was kind of a runner for Peter
Gammons's copy or whatever.
But I got to meet him
behind the batting cage,
and he radiated
everything that he is.
You know, he was cocky and
confident and charming.
So if you were a Red
Sox fan, you hated him.
But if he were a Red
Sox, he would have
been a picture on our mantle
on every mantle in New England.
Good evening, everybody
around the world, Curt Gowdy
and Marty Brennaman.
Yes, there is a game
6 to the World Series.
We finally got a
break in the weather.
The northeaster that hung
around Boston for three days
has blown away.
Remember, the Reds need to win
tonight, and it's all over.
A Red Sox win would send
it into its final game
tomorrow night.
Well, the players
for three days,
what have they been thinking?
What have they been doing?
My memory was in
Fenway, you know,
when you imagine Pete
Rose at the plate,
you know, crouched like a kid
in the backyard or something,
and the fans would
yell, "Stand up!
Hit it like a man!"
Again, Armbrister on the
move, and Rose lines a base
hit to center field.
Armbrister will
try to go to third.
And Lynn
I have to say, that
was the greatest
World Series ever played.
Reds trail 3-0, but
they're threatening
with one out in the fifth.
And a fly ball deep
to center field.
Lynn going way back, way back.
And he can't make the play.
It's off the wall.
One run comes in.
Here comes Rose
with the second run.
And Freddie Lynn is first.
3-0, 3-3, 6-3, 6-6.
Last time I went up to bat,
I looked back at Carlton,
and I says, are you having fun?
I said, isn't this
isn't this a hoot,
playing a game like we are?
Bottom of the 12th inning.
6 runs, 14 hits, no
errors for Cincinnati.
6 runs, 9 hits, 1
error for Boston.
And Fisk will lead it off.
Has a single and
has walked twice.
He's been on base three times.
Here's Fisk.
There it goes.
A long drive.
If it stays fair, home run!
We will have a seventh game
in this 1975 World Series.
Carlton Fisk becomes
the first player
in this series to hit one
over the wall into the net.
Red Sox win it 7
to 6 in 12 innings.
How many steps
did he take? One?
He waits to see it.
Get over! Get over!
He knew it.
There it is.
I tell you, one of
the more dramatic home
runs in World Series history.
And there is Tom Yawkey
I remember when we
got beat in game 6,
Sparky was in the clubhouse.
He looked at me, and he said,
Big Red Machine, my ass.
How do you guys blow that game?
I said, Spark, Spark, did you
see that celebration they had?
That's game 6.
They got to come back tomorrow.
Another game tonight.
It's one season right
down to one game.
Good luck to you.
All the money is
on the line, and
all the glory is on the line.
And we're playing for
them diamond rings.
And we just hope
that we can Bill Lee.
He's a tough pitcher.
And they got to get Don
Gullett, who's tough.
Ball 4.
He's on again.
Base hit right here.
Carbo scores.
3 and 0 pitch.
Ball 4.
Another run across.
Red Sox lead 3-0 as
Yastrzemski scores.
In that World Series
game 7, the Red Sox
take a 3-run lead early on.
But people always remember
that game for the eephus pitch.
Oh, there it is.
Slow eephus curveball.
Perez wanted nothing of it.
Which was the third time Bill
Lee threw it to Tony Perez
in that World Series.
Tony said that when
he threw that pitch,
there was a little
hesitation when his leg
kicked forward and landed.
And he made Tony look silly.
And Tony remembered that.
And if you've ever
wondered what it looks
like from a sportscaster's
advantage
Right there.
Now, here we go with Pete
Rose at the top of the order
in the sixth inning.
There's a base hit by
Rose into right field.
And the third fourth inning
in a row the Reds have had
their leadoff batter get on.
A lot of people don't understand
how important every play is.
Johnny Bench has grounded out.
Flying out to deep
center. Ball up short.
They've got one
and turn it over.
Wild throw by Doyle
into the dugouts.
They had the double play,
and Doyle threw it away.
We were down 3 runs.
And I go into second
and hit Denny Doyle.
Now watch Denny.
He knows Pete Rose is coming.
And Rose called this wild throw.
Pete broke up the
play and, of course,
almost crippled Denny Doyle.
And Doyle has been charged
with his second error
of the night.
Bench winds up at second.
2 down.
Tony Perez up, is grounded
out and popped up.
Red Sox ahead
Tony Perez, he saw that
little hesitation that he had
noticed those other two times.
And he said, this is it.
He's thrown me he's thrown
me that damn thing again.
There's his blooper pitch.
There it is.
A high drive. He was
waiting for that one.
That one is gone,
over everything.
And now we have another 1-run
ball game in this World Series.
That was a tape
measured home run.
Red Sox fans have not
gotten over that yet.
Reds threatening in the seventh.
2 down.
Now the switch-hitting
Pete Rose is coming up.
There's a line shot to center.
Here's a man rounding third.
Here comes the throw.
It is not in time.
The other runners advance.
And the Reds have tied it.
So if I don't break
that double play up,
you know, we don't
ever tie that game.
There's a looper. It drops.
It's in for a hit.
Here comes the throw to third.
Rose hits the dirt.
He's safe.
And there goes Morgan
down to second.
And the Reds have
the lead 4 to 3,
as Joe Morgan blooped a
base hit into center field.
It never happens to some people.
I don't think Ernie Banks
ever won a World Series.
You have to experience
taking that trophy
and holding it up like that
to know what it feels like.
Top of the ninth inning.
He put the Reds ahead.
There's a high fly ball.
It should be all over.
Gerónimo's under.
And Cincinnati has won
the World Championship,
beating the Boston
Red Sox 4 to 3.
The Reds win it in Fenway Park.
They wanted this one badly
after winning 108 times
this year.
One of the best World
Series of modern times
for the baseball
fans of America.
You know, to the casual
observer of baseball,
the moment of the '75
series that's etched in all
of our minds is Carlton
Fisk's, you know, stay fair,
running down, winning game 6.
But the Reds won.
The Reds won that World Series.
I just want to remind everybody.
You can't win in game 6.
I'm sorry.
You know, just because he's
doing this here doesn't mean
they won the World Series.
But we we explained
that to them quickly.
Joe, for the 115th
time this season,
this one belongs to the
Reds. And it was a big one.
Right on.
This is the biggest one
I've ever played in, Marty.
We come from behind. It
looked like we were dead.
But we never die.
This is an
unbelievable ball club.
And I'm just so happy, man.
I can't tell you how much.
And Pete Rose is unbelievable.
He got all the clutch hits
every time we needed one.
I know Bench raised the trophy.
Morgan raised the trophy.
Perez raised the trophy.
Concepción did.
But when I raised the
trophy, it meant more to me
than anybody else because,
hey, I was born there.
I couldn't be happier
if I had all the money
in the world and everything.
This is the happiest
moment of my life.
I'm scared I'm going
to have a coronary.
I really
- Pete, congratulations.
- For everybody.
- Peter!
Here's Clay Carroll.
You can say I didn't respect
the game when I bet on it.
And you're probably right.
But however, up till that time,
as far as playing the game,
I played the game right.
I'm going to tell
you right now, OK?
You can put this on
the camera right there.
I put it on the field in
front of millions of people
that I love the
game of baseball.
And that's a fact.
We're happy to be back
here as world champions.
We hope you love us
because we love you,
because you helped make
Cincinnati the baseball
capital of the world.
Thank you.
Pete Rose! Pete Rose!
Pete Rose! Pete Rose!
Pete Rose!
You guys should interview my son
while you're in Cincinnati.
We're going to
interview your son.
I want to interview your son.
I want to talk about him.
He he lived it.
He definitely lived it.
And he had a long
career as Pete Rose Jr.
Got 2,000 hits in the minors.
2,000.
That's a lot of fucking hits.
He got fucked because of me.
You know, when I got in
trouble, a lot of people
took it out on him in the
minor league stadiums.
So that's how cruel
people could be.
It's tough to follow
a guy like me.
Everyone ready?
We are ready and speeding.
Always one last thing.
What's your T-stop over there?
I'm at a 2.
Let's go down to 1.5.
I'm at a 4.5.
We're good.
0.1.
Yeah, whatever it takes.
- All right.
What's going on today?
Let me know what your
life's like today.
You in baseball today?
No, I'm retired.
I'm a full-time father,
just a normal
a normal person, which is good.
I was a baseball
player for 21 years
and then managed for
another seven or eight.
May get back in
maybe in the future
once the kids are
up and out of here.
But just kind of nice
to be a normal guy.
I'm a Rose.
My idol is number 14.
I knew what I was going
to do at a young age,
or what I wanted to do.
But the reason I wanted to do it
was because I always wanted
to be at my dad's side.
So but it was normal.
It was normal, and it
was a great childhood.
You know, when I was growing up,
hard-nosed, can't
cry in front of Dad.
My sister couldn't
cry in front of Dad.
You know, if we lost,
we had to walk home.
We couldn't eat.
I'm just joking.
But we didn't move.
We stayed here.
I went to school here.
I was known as Pete.
I wasn't known as
Pete Rose's son.
You know, everybody
knew me as Pete.
The only difference was and
it was great we got to go
to the ballpark every night.
I got to put my uniform on.
And as a little kid,
you can ask him,
but I had to have
stitched in uniform.
I had to be exactly like my dad.
Wore batting gloves to school.
Took my glove to school.
I wore turf shoes to prom.
Come on.
I remember being really
jealous of Pete Rose Jr.
Because I'd see him as a batboy,
and I was like, how come he
gets to be in the dugout?
He's got his name on
the back of his jersey.
I want a jersey.
Want my name on the
back of a Reds jersey.
It helps to know a player.
You'd have Pete Jr.,
Eduardo and Victor Perez
And Ken Griffey Jr., and
they're just running around.
We lived in the clubhouse.
And Sparky Anderson would
actually get the kids together
and would tell us the rules.
If the team wins, you're
allowed in the clubhouse
after the game.
If the team loses, you're
not allowed in the clubhouse
after the game.
We had to watch the game.
And then we had to
yell at the umpires.
So what did that create?
Kids up in the stands
rooting for their old men
to win the game
because they wanted
to come into the clubhouse.
The clubhouse was fun.
That was a big
advantage for the sons.
Luckily for us, in the
'70s, the Reds won a lot.
It's World Series
time in baseball,
the culmination of the
six-month baseball season.
And this year's 1976 World
Series, the New York Yankees
and the Cincinnati Reds.
Here's Joe Morgan.
Morgan hit .320, 27 home
runs, 111 runs batted in,
stole 60 bases in 69 attempts.
Come on, Joe, hit
one out of here.
Uh-oh.
There she goes!
Deep to right field.
Could be out of here.
1-0 Cincinnati.
Base hit left field.
We're going to have a race.
Here comes Griffey.
Here comes the throw.
Cincinnati wins it 4 to 3.
Uh-oh.
That is that is gone.
Man, that ball
jumped out of here.
How easy he made that look.
Dan Driessen.
Deep to left field.
Get out of here!
Home run.
It's a home run, as Johnny Bench
has just hit his second
home run of the night,
a 3-run homer.
The Cincinnati Reds win the
World Series in four straight.
It was a sweep.
The final score, Cincinnati
7, the New York Yankees 2.
Pete.
Hey, congratulations.
You repeated.
You proved you can play with
anybody and maybe any team
in the history of baseball.
It's a great ball club,
a great bunch of guys.
You got to give credit
to Bench tonight.
He swung the bat
in the whole series
and hit two home runs tonight.
But it's tough to
win two in a row.
And here we are, and
we're just very happy.
Better club than last year?
Oh, this is the best
club in 14 years
I've been associated
with at Cincinnati.
And I think it was
strictly a team
It felt like my dad is
a superhero, period.
But, you know, we never
looked at it that way.
But now looking
back on it, I mean,
you can understand on why
he was such a big deal here.
Midnight last night, the
Cincinnati Reds within the
hour had won their second
straight World Series victory.
The Reds got little if any
sleep before they reported
to Riverfront at 11:30 for
the parade and Fountain
Square program in their honor.
He's our guy.
If you're from here, if
you're a true Cincinnatian,
you know, he's our Babe Ruth.
I mean, that's the
only way to put it.
If Yankee Stadium was the
house that Ruth built,
it is no exaggeration to
say that Riverfront Stadium
is the house that Rose built.
Pete Rose is one of those
rare individuals who
has transcended
his sport and has
become a piece of Americana.
Charlie Hustle is surely an
inspiration for the young
and the young at heart.
This Cincinnati restaurant
carries the Pete Rose name.
He doesn't own it, but
gets a small royalty
on total food sales.
When I made the big leagues,
I got a $7,000 bonus
when I signed with the Reds.
And I won Rookie of the
Year, and I jumped that
all the way up to $12,000.
Then I jumped that
up to $46,000.
Then I jumped that
up to $150,000.
The phone rings all
the time in my house.
Do this commercial,
do that commercial,
and do this commercial.
And I don't go out
soliciting commercials.
They call me.
I don't call them.
He has the usual
millionaire toys, more
money tied up in
wheels than most men
earn in three or four years.
It got to the point where,
hey, I made enough money,
I can do what I want to do.
Pete, for example, is a
great humanitarian, you know,
with kids.
Football, baseball,
basketball, and hockey.
He taught those kids
how to bet on them all.
No.
I couldn't see it
overtaking his life.
He loved it.
So did a lot of people.
It's estimated that $30
billion, $30 billion,
is bet illegally each
year in this country
on sporting events, a lot
of it bet on pro football.
Instead of Jimmy the Greek,
we're going to have to go
with Peter the Irishman today.
All right, up to you now, Rose.
Tampa Bay against the Giants.
How about those Buccaneers?
They're for real.
And they're going to win today.
- They're going to win easy
This is the first time they've
ever been favored on
the road in the history
of the franchise.
Where did you get
all that stuff?
You're pretty good.
I follow football pretty good.
Tampa Bay will win today.
All right, now the rest of the
schedule, you agree with
Were you betting
baseball at the time?
I don't remember.
What about football?
I you know what?
I really sure, I bet on
football, Sunday football.
I used to think
Monday night football
was to get even for Sunday.
But did you feel like
what you were doing
was OK because
other people knew?
That's what I'm asking.
Well, I thought what I
was what I was doing,
most guys were doing.
Calling up a bookmaker and
betting on Sunday night
football or Monday
night football,
that's not going
to affect my job.
Ever since he arrived in
the majors 15 years ago,
attention has constantly
focused on Pete Rose.
With the media, if he liked you
or if he recognized the name of
your publication, he was great.
I was covering baseball
for "Sports Illustrated."
So I saw him a lot.
Now, his remarkable
consecutive game
hitting streak has
magnified the attention
like never before.
Pete Rose hit safely in his 33rd
straight game last night and
goes for number 34 tonight.
He's got it. It's in there.
It's there!
All right!
Number 35 and an RBI!
Pete Rose is
continually blessed.
Rose's streak also put
considerable attention
on the man he was
chasing, Tommy Holmes,
who set the National
League mark of 37 in 1945.
Line drive, base hit left field,
and Pete Rose has broken
the record of Tommy Holmes.
Number 38.
And they're going wild at Shea.
And he gets a standing
ovation from a crowd that
has swelled because of him.
It just so happened the Mets had
Tommy Holmes on their payroll.
And they trotted Tommy
out onto the field,
and there was a ceremony.
Pete offered him the ball.
And there goes Tommy
Holmes down to first base.
There is Tommy Holmes.
And what a thrilling
moment this is.
It was the kind of
generous gesture
that Pete Rose would make in
recognition and appreciation
for old baseball.
Tommy Holmes said
to Pete last night,
"Thanks for bringing me
back to the Major Leagues."
That's about the time that
you got every major sports
publication in the
country following
the club game by game.
Hello, everybody.
This is Atlanta-Fulton
County Stadium,
where one of the
biggest Atlanta Braves
crowds of the entire
year has turned
out to follow one of the
biggest sports stories
of recent years.
They were here en
masse to watch Pete
Rose take batting practice.
If he can get a hit tonight,
he will tie the all-time
National League record
of 44, which was compiled
in 1897 by Wee Willie Keeler.
Hard hit ball.
Past the second
baseman Gilbreath.
And Pete Rose has
done it, a base hit
in the 44th consecutive game.
And everyone in Atlanta
Stadium is on their feet.
People hung on every at bat.
The fans would cheer him
and root for their own team,
but they would always
cheer Pete Rose.
And now there is only
one number, one name
left as a goal for Pete Rose
56 games, Joe DiMaggio, 1941.
Obviously, Joe DiMaggio
holds the all-time record,
56, in the modern era.
You were up in the
40s at one time.
How lucky do you have to be?
Can you put it in context?
Yeah, because when
the streak ended
in Atlanta against Gene
Garber and McWilliams,
I hit two seeds.
There's a ball hit right
back to McWilliams.
And he stabs at it and gets it,
and he stops Pete Rose there.
He lines it right at Horner.
And Horner will get the double
play because Dave Collins
Baseball's a lucky game.
There's eight guys out there
with this rag on their hand
trying to catch the ball.
Listen to this ovation for Rose.
It's a standing ovation.
In other words, what
these fans are saying,
hit or no hit,
Pete, we love you.
Here it is.
He's up for his last turn.
He's got to do it right here,
or his streak is broken.
He bunts.
Foul.
Boy, you could feel it.
Now the 0-1.
Ball inside.
1 ball, 1 strike.
I was looking at
that last at-bat.
Did you did you have
a pitch to hit there?
No.
Inside.
2 and 1.
A walk kills it, too.
You got to remember, I
think I'm right about this,
but the score was 16 to 4.
I didn't expect
Gene Garber to throw
me one right down Broadway
in the express lane, OK?
However, if I'd have
went up without a bat,
I'd have walked on four pitches.
31,000 on their feet yelling.
His streak in danger.
Now the 2-2.
No good!
Miss!
Rose's streak is broken!
The Braves win!
And Rose is getting
another standing ovation!
Rose strikes
I was a little surprised.
I guess Garber's
got a job to do.
But he pitched to me like
it was the seventh game
of the World Series.
Do you feel relieved?
No, I feel pissed off.
That's how I feel.
Yeah.
I just went 0 for 4,
and we got beat 16 to 4.
I don't feel relieved
about anything.
Are you anxious to
start another streak?
Yeah, I sure am.
What we got left now?
56 games.
That's what we got
left on the season now.
Yeah.
I wouldn't want to do that.
I would go crazy all winter.
- Hey.
- Jeffrey.
- Pete.
- How are you, my man?
- Good to see you.
- Have a seat.
Thanks for coming.
You look good.
You lost weight.
Did you ever go
to the eye doctor?
I'm getting cataract
surgery on the 21st.
You are?
Yeah.
When you were
playing, did they ever
tell you what your vision was?
- 15/20.
- Really?
Yeah. I had great eyes.
You ever see my girlfriends?
You agree with me.
Give me some skin.
I love that.
So I spoke to Major League
Baseball about you this week.
- Did they answer?
- They did.
OK.
You know, Baseball essentially
said what they want is
in this final step is they'd
like to hear from fellow Hall
of Famers who support you.
So are there 8, 9, 10 guys
that we can just easily call?
Like, Frank said he'd
do it in in a second.
Sure, he would.
I'm sure Perez would do it, too.
I'm sure
So I think that's what we need.
I would legitimately
I'm sure Schmidt would do it.
I can't think of guys
who wouldn't do it.
OK, so so I want to move
Hey, it's been 33 years.
I know, I know.
I think we're there.
It'll be a monster story.
People people want this.
How in the world did you first
meet or come across Pete?
Well, I loved Pete as a kid.
And then years later, I
thought about him often.
I had not even met him.
And I was talking to my
buddy who worked for Fox.
And we were talking
about his baseball shows.
And I said to him, you
know, you need personality
on those shows,
someone who really is
going to drive the audience.
And we thought about
just randomly Pete Rose.
I got one serious
question to ask.
I'd like to ask Alex,
after you pass Babe Ruth
and decide to retire
in a couple of years,
and after you buy Fox, will
you keep Frank and I on?
As far as what's more
conducive to pitching,
but I don't think
this is an issue.
But we saw it with Kershaw.
They were they're going
to go to the bullpen.
What? What?
Talk to me.
- He's just
He's being Pete.
That's just Pete,
just doing his thing.
At first, it was like
unfreezing someone from, like,
a thousand years ago and putting
them in a work environment
that they have never been in.
Pete, you were
trending on Twitter.
And one of the real fun parts
about it was this this photo.
And you got to give the Fox
people credit because not only
did they have the
vision to do it,
the show, for when he was
on it, was wildly successful
and won the Emmy.
Why did it stop?
Why isn't he still a
personality on Fox?
No, it's a great question.
And there's a real
simple answer for it,
in that Pete got into a
fight sort of publicly
with John Dowd from
the Dowd Report.
And Dowd alleged that Pete
had been involved in scandals
with underage women.
Pete denied any of that.
The case began last year
when Pete Rose sued former Major
League Baseball investigator
John Dowd for defaming him with
false statements, including
allegations that Rose
repeatedly committed statutory
rape and ran with 12-
to 14-year-old girls.
Dowd, the man hired by Major
League Baseball in 1989
to investigate Pete Rose,
made a startling statement
during a radio
interview two years ago.
You know, there's a lot
of other activities.
Michael Bertolini,
you know, told us
that he not only ran
bets, but he ran young
girls for him down in spring
training, ages 12 to 14.
Isn't that lovely?
So that's statutory rape
every time you do that.
Come on, come on, come on.
Come on.
- Are you doing all right?
Hands off, buddy.
Come on. Come on.
To be honest with you,
that's 150% untrue.
My wife was always
in spring training.
I didn't bring young
girls to spring training.
I don't think John
Dowd said that.
I I know he didn't say that.
Well, what he says on the radio.
But, you know, John Dowd is
he's a prosecutor.
He's a prosecutor that,
I made him famous.
Now, in the court filing today,
Dowd provided a sworn
statement from a woman who
claims she met Rose in
1973 when she was 14 or 15
and started a
sexual relationship
that lasted several years.
Pete Rose, also
in court filings,
acknowledges he had a
consensual sexual relationship
with the woman, but not
until she was 16 years old,
the legal age of
consent in Ohio.
She she was within
the range of her age.
So who gives a shit?
Well, first of all, I don't
I don't ever remember going
out with a 16-year-old.
18, yes. 18.
But don't forget, I'm not
50 or 60 when I'm going
out with this 18-year-old.
There's probably a
lot of guys in this
room that are 28 to 30 that
date 18- and 19-year-olds.
I would think so.
Dowd's lawyers say that if
Rose did not want to answer
questions about having
sex with teenagers,
his well-documented
history of lying,
or his mental
health, he should not
have filed this lawsuit.
Fox was dealing with a lot
of PR issues from Me Too.
He shouldn't have pursued it.
But Fox had no options
but to take that brewing
scandal off the air.
OK.
So you think
because of my power,
I got an 18-year-old girl?
Is that what you're saying?
I I don't know.
I mean, those are the
kind of people who are
never going to reinstate you.
I know what kind
of player I was.
My fans know what
kind of player I was.
It looks as if you're
not going to play
for Cincinnati next year.
It looks that way.
My contract ended after the
last game of the season.
And I don't think I
should be at the top
of my profession and be
15th or 16th in payroll.
- Is that where you are now?
- That's where I am now.
It just don't make
any sense to me.
It occurs to me maybe
they think Pete Rose
wouldn't leave Cincinnati.
I mean, here's Pete
Rose, a neighborhood kid,
grew up in Cincinnati, right?
I got my car packed.
You're ready to move, huh?
Got my Rolls Royce packed, man.
What kind of team would
you like to play for?
If you could pick maybe
not a specific team,
what kind of a team do you want?
- Where are you from?
- Philadelphia.
Oh, man, that's a good team.
You'd like to play
for the Phillies, huh?
You said that, I didn't.
Honestly, no we could
trade Mike wait,
we'll trade Mike Schmidt
- No.
There was an undercurrent
of understanding
that there were people
in the Reds organization
that did not like him.
They didn't like
Pete's flamboyant style
of living that had nothing
to do with the way he
played the game.
They maintained that he
was a selfish player.
But to say he was a selfish
player was ridiculous.
I mean, it couldn't
have been more so.
So and that was the
way they were positioning
themselves to let him leave.
I don't know that they made
him a decent offer here.
In the winter, Pete
Rose went through
an extraordinary negotiation
with half a dozen teams.
The bidding went crazy.
Atlanta, for example, was
willing to pay a million
dollars a year for four years.
Other teams flashed
beer distributorships
and thoroughbred horses at him.
Pete Rose was such a landmark,
many residents were outraged
the Reds wouldn't do whatever
it took to keep him here.
Well, St. Louis wouldn't
trade Stan Musial.
The Yankees wouldn't
trade Mickey Mantle.
I don't think we should
let Pete Rose go.
Pete Rose broke
my heart as a kid.
Seeing him leave, I just
couldn't imagine how
my idol was going to leave.
I mean, he's from Cincinnati.
He grew up in Cincinnati.
He is Cincinnati.
How can he leave?
The former Cincinnati Reds
star, now a free agent,
signed a four-year,
$3.2 million contract,
making him the highest paid
player in baseball history.
Rose says he likes
Philadelphia because he thinks
that with his
injection of talent,
the team will be a cinch
for the World Series.
Was there any other thing
that could have been
behind wanting him to leave?
There may and I say
may because I don't know,
but I heard it after the fact.
They were concerned about the
people that he hung out with.
And they were concerned
about the possibility
that he may have been involved
in gambling back then.
Is there any way
baseball knew that you
were gambling already?
Yeah, I think they did.
I think they did somewhat.
Because I sit here
and I think, you
got a hometown kid that's really
setting the records on fire.
Why do you get rid of him?
Why do you get rid of
him for the '79 season
after what I did in '78?
OK. Good?
All right.
You know, just when
you're talking,
look at me and not there.
OK.
We'll be back in one second.
Can you get it?
Yeah.
OK.
- OK.
You know, Pete was
everything to me.
Not only my he was like a guy
that I looked up to as my idol.
He's bigger than life.
And he was like a dad.
You know, I listened to him.
Tommy Gioiosa was so
close to Pete Rose
that Rose took him into
his own home to live
and took him to the racetrack
to place Rose's bets.
We went to the track
probably every night.
If we missed a night,
it was unusual.
Tommy Gioiosa told "Vanity
Fair Magazine" in 2001
that Rose bet on his own team
and financed drug deals to pay
off huge gambling debts,
including a deal that landed
Gioiosa in federal prison.
From the day one when
I was with Pete Rose,
I always would go to
the racetracks with him
and bet basketball and football.
And then the addiction
got out of control.
He was losing lots of monies in
basketball and stuff like that.
And he started betting baseball.
You probably knew
it was wrong to do.
- Sure.
- Maybe you thought
Well, I didn't do it
when I was a player.
Yes.
But don't forget, a couple of
years, I was a player manager.
Yes.
And we're talking
like, right now,
we're talking about 1978.
- Right.
- So there was a rumor in '78.
Some people don't like you.
And they start rumors of
anything they want to say,
they say.
And not a darn thing
you could do about it.
Yeah, but despite the
rumors, at some point,
you did switch, right?
You did something happened in
you that you said, I actually
now I'm going to
bet on baseball.
What was the moment
I tell you what.
You must really think
I'm a fucking genius.
Do you remember
what you did in '78?
Do you remember
what you did in '82?
I don't remember
what I did last week.
And what's your next
stupid question?
Oh, I got a few more.
Is this the kind of doc that
are you going to try to
make me look a certain way?
No.
Just trying to
understand Pete Rose.
Not the legend, just
the human being.
Just the guy who puts
his pants on every day.
But I don't wear
underwear, though.
Oh, that's it for me, man.
The greatest of all time.
The greatest of all
time right there, baby.