Has Selig Stand on Pete Rose Softened?
CINCINNATI (Associated Press) - As his term winds down, baseball Commissioner Bud Selig hasn't changed his outlook on Pete Rose's lifetime ban for gambling.
Selig visited Cincinnati on Friday for the opening of an urban youth academy.
He declined to talk about Rose's case directly, but gave no indication that he's inclined to change his mind and reinstate him before he leaves office in January. He acknowledged that Rose still has a lot of support in his hometown.
"I have to do in the end ... always do what I think is in the best interests of this sport," Selig said. "That transcends everything else."
Selig will retire in January after 22 years as commissioner, turning the office over to Rob Manfred. He'll share his thoughts with Manfred about Rose's lifetime ban - which began 25 years ago - and his longstanding application for reinstatement.
"How it ends eventually, I don't know," Selig said. "But I've taken it seriously, talked to a lot of people. And it's one of those situations in life that are difficult, you wish didn't exist but it does ..."
