Then gambling accusations and tax evasion surfaced. Rose eventually admitted to betting on sports and was accused of betting on baseball (but not his own team). In 1989, commissioner Bart Giamatti suspended Rose from baseball for life for gambling. In 1990, Rose paid his debt to society for a separate crime by serving five months in prison for tax evasion.

This left baseball in a curious situation. It had banned one of its best players from the game and yet he would soon be inducted into the Hall of Fame, baseball’s holiest shrine. In 1989, the eligibility rules were changed to forbid entry in to the Hall of Fame by players banned from Major League Baseball. This kept Rose out of the Hall of Fame. I believe that this has to change. Rose belongs in the Hall of Fame. I firmly believe that the following three factors make my position inarguable:

First, and weakest of all, the Hall of Fame is not made up of saints or p

Secondly, a somewhat stronger point than the first, is the fact that baseball has made “banned for life” a temporary punishment, as evidenced by the repeated banning for life and reinstatement of Steve Howe for illegal drug use (I believe they repeated this cycle seven times). Baseball does this because it wants to be tough on drugs, but compassionate to its addicted players.

Rose played in a National League record 24 seasons.

His 44-game hitting streak ranks among the longest of all-time.

Thirdly, and strongest of all my points, is the undisputed evidence that Rose has earned a place in the Hall of Fame. Consider the following:

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