Phillies Approved to Put Pete Rose on Wall of Fame

Major League Baseball has approved the Phillies to induct Pete Rose onto the Wall of Fame as a top Phillie in the team’s history.

The Phillies will soon induct several players from their 2008 World Series run into the Wall of Fame, but they might put one in from their 1980 title first. According to Bob Brookover of the Philadelphia Inquirer, “A baseball source said Thursday that the Phillies have been given approval by Major League Baseball to induct [Pete] Rose onto their Wall of Fame.”

Rose would be the ninth player from the 1980 team to be inducted into the Wall of Fame. He would join other Phils greats like Mike Schmidt, Steve Carlton, and Larry Bowa.

Normally the team doesn’t need to worry about the league approving their candidates for the Wall of Fame, but Rose is a special case. If for some reason you don’t know, Rose was placed on baseball’s permanently ineligible list in 1989 for gambling on baseball while he was a manager. The Hall of Fame also barred Rose from ever being inducted.

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Rose was also banned from any on-field activities conducted by MLB teams, but that rule has since been relaxed. Rose was part of the 1999 All-Century team celebration at Fenway Park that year as well as being part of the ceremonies at Cincinnati’s All-Star Game in 2015. The Reds have inducted Rose into their own Hall of Fame, and now Philadelphia will give Rose that same opportunity.

However, there are still some steps in the process before Rose can become a Wall of Famer. Online fan balloting will begin later this month, with Scott Rolen and Placido Polanco both expected to be Wall of Fame candidates. Rolen and Polanco both spent more time in Philadelphia than Rose, but Brookover said, “neither Rolen nor Polanco was ever embraced the way Phillies fans fell in love with Peter Edward Rose.”

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Former team president Bill Giles broke the bank in 1978 to get Rose to sign with Philadelphia after 16 seasons in Cincinnati. They eventually were able to sign Rose to a four-year, $3.225 million deal to pry him away from the Reds. For perspective, the average MLB player made just under $122,000 in 1979 while Rose made $905,000.

Surprsingly, Rose wasn’t a particularly valuable player in terms of WAR. He didn’t rack up much defensive value since he played first base most of the time for the Phils. In his five years in Philadelphia, Rose racked up just 1.1 WAR. He was worth 4.8 oWAR but also -8.9 dWAR.

Despite that, fans absolutely adored Rose’s nose-to-the-grindstone approach to every play.

Rose, the all-time leader in career hits, was an All-Star 17 times. He won three World Series championships and was the World Series MVP in 1975. Rose also won Rookie of the Year in 1963, the NL MVP in 1973, two Gold Gloves, and a Silver Slugger.

Next: Phillies Projected to Finish Last in NL East by PECOTA System

Cooperstown may always be out of reach for Rose, but the teams he played for will still honor him.