Pete Rose petitions Hall of Fame for inclusion on ballot

Attorneys for all-time hit king Pete Rose took aim at the National Baseball Hall of Fame bylaw that unofficially is known as “the Pete Rose Rule” in a letter sent to Hall president Jeff Idelson this week.

Rose was banned by for life from Major League Baseball by then-commissioner Bart Giamatti in August 1989 after an investigation determined Rose had bet on Cincinnati Reds games while he managed the team. About 18 months later, the Hall of Fame created Rule 3A, which stated any player on baseball’s ineligible list could not be considered for induction.

“We are writing to respectfully request that Pete Rose be treated exactly the same way that every other Major League Baseball (MLB) player and manager has been treated from the start of the National Baseball Hall of Fame voting in 1936 until 1991,” attorneys Raymond Genco and Mark Rosenbaum wrote in the letter obtained by USA TODAY Sports.  “We humbly submit to you that Rule 3A should be amended in a limited way, to allow Pete Rose to be treated in exactly the same way as every other player and manager before him had been treated.”

Yahoo Sports was the first outlet to report the letter had been sent to Idelson.

This latest bid by Rose comes after MLB commissioner Rob Manfred denied Rose’s request for reinstatement last December.

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Genco told USA TODAY Sports that creating a rule after a transgression wouldn’t be tolerated if it was done in the judicial system, known as an ex post facto laws that have been deemed unconstitutional.

“In the criminal justice system, you can’t make an agreement and then change the circumstances and punish somebody for it,” Genco said.

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