Baseball Musings: Dowd on Rose

January 11, 2004

Dowd on Rose

If you ever had any doubt that Rose was a complete idiot, read John Dowd's column in the Washington Post:

Following that deposition, with the facts in hand, Bart directed me to find a resolution. I spent an entire month meeting with Pete's lawyers. Bart and I agreed on the fundamental points of such a resolution: Pete would have to reconfigure his life. He would have to stop betting. He would have to make a candid response to all of the hard evidence. He would have to explain his association with all of the characters in the betting operation. He would have to submit to, and complete, a full rehabilitation. During his rehabilitation, he would be removed from the game of baseball.

I had been advised by federal authorities that if Rose agreed to these terms, he would not be prosecuted for tax evasion but would have to pay all taxes, interest and penalties due. Upon successful completion of his rehabilitation, he would have been readmitted to the game of baseball and could receive all honors which come with achievement and good conduct. He would have been eligible, if chosen, for admission to the Hall of Fame.

I worked for a month with Pete's counsel. They tried but could not get Pete to admit the truth. They asked if I would meet with him alone and talk to him. They believed I could bring him around. Bart approved and I agreed to talk to Pete. But Pete's agent vetoed the meeting.

We were at complete loggerheads. Pete's criminal counsel wanted the resolution we were working on but his agent would not budge. Bart, then-deputy commissioner Fay Vincent and I met with Pete's agent. He told us that Pete was a legend and would not admit to any of the allegations. It was a short meeting.

That sort of blows away Rose's argument that if he had been a drug addict, he would have been treated differently. Baseball was willing to work with Rose to fix his life and keep him in the game. It might not have worked; some people can never shake their demons. If Rose had tried rehad and failed he would have been a tragic figure, and I think baseball would have found a way to put him in the Hall of Fame. Instead, he's a loathsome individual who is quickly dissipating any good will that existed for him.

Posted by David Pinto at 10:19 AM | Baseball Jerks | TrackBack (1)

Comments

Why are we even hot and bothered about a egoistic megalomanic liar... We should be celebrating Eck and Molitor for their election into Hall of Fame. They had their demons and beat it. Pete Rose still has his and in denial.

Posted by: J at January 11, 2004 01:53 PM

I'm vexed by this. Why was this never mentioned? I think Dowd did a phenomenal job investigating and putting forth a complete case, but this is strange timing for the talk of a potential plea bargain. Sadly, I'm starting to see patterns to how this is all being sold publicly ... I just hope I'm being paranoid again.

Posted by: Will at January 11, 2004 04:15 PM

What a sad man Pete Rose has become. I agree with those who think he should be allowed on the HoF ballot -- the rules for that did change ofter he signed the agreement -- but I don't see how he could ever be reinstated and allowed to participate in baseball in any way.

Posted by: Clay Caviness at January 11, 2004 04:55 PM

I'm also confused: Why would the IRS have passed on prosecuting Rose on the tax-evasion charges if Dowd had been able to work out a plea deal on the baseball & gambling issues? That doesn't sound like the way the IRS operates.

Posted by: Dr. Manhattan at January 12, 2004 09:41 AM

I assume it hasn't come out before because it would have been useless. Dowd says, "We offered him a plea bargain. His lawyers said yes but Rose said no." So you go ask Rose to confirm this. Rose lies and says no. You ask the lawyers to confirm it. They can't talk do to lawyer-client privilege. So there's no way of confirming the story. But at this point, Dowd has credibility and Rose doesn't. So Dowd can say this, and any Rose denial won't be believed.

As for the IRS, I assume the agreement would have worked out a way for Rose to pay off his back taxes. That would likely have appeased the IRS.

Of course, all of this is pure speculation on my part.

Posted by: David Pinto at January 12, 2004 09:51 AM

hi david.
i also don't understand why this wasn't published a long time ago. i still can't believe there are so many people who can't grasp that a player or manager betting on baseball is a REALLY BAD THING! i am hoping that any proof if any, of rose betting on baseball as a player will soon be released as well. because he shouldn't be banned from the hall because of what he did after he stopped playing. also, they did change the hall admission rules specificaly to keep him out. i certainly agree that he really is a scuzzball and made himself look even worse by driving his competitors out of the news (eck and molly). he looked like the little kidz in day care who snatch toys away from the other kidz then have a tantrum when they're scolded. it is really gross to see such an old guy acting like a 2 year old. but i don't know if you can ban a player from the hall for being such an awful person any more than you can admit someone (dale murphy) for being a saint (i think cuz he didn't drink soda or swear, or something like that.)

Posted by: lisa gray at January 15, 2004 03:24 PM