After sex charges, Phils cancel event honoring Rose
• Rose falls off Wall of Fame as Phillies cancel ceremony
PHILADELPHIA » With allegations swirling that he once had inappropriate relations with an underage girl, Pete Rose will not join the Phillies’ Wall of Fame.
Banned from baseball and ineligible for the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown because of his history of gambling on baseball, Rose was to have been honored by the Phillies with a franchise Wall of Fame plaque Aug. 12 at Citizens Bank Park.
But in an announcement Wednesday, the Phillies, in concert with Rose, said that the ceremony would not take place. No alternate date was announced.
“While I am truly honored that the Phillies fans voted for me to be this year’s Wall of Fame inductee,” said Rose, in the statement, “I am concerned that other matters will overshadow the goodwill associated with Alumni Weekend, and I agree with the decision not to participate.”
The Wall of Fame induction was to highlight the Phillies’ annual Alumni Weekend, Aug. 1113, when the New York Mets will visit. Among the scheduled activities was a Pete Rose bobblehead giveaway Aug. 11. That, too, has been canceled, the Phillies said.
Still scheduled is the Aug. 12 pregame tribute to former Wall of Fame inductees. Also, more than 40 Phillies alumni will be recognized on the field Sunday, Aug. 13, when each fan will receive a Wall of Fame card pack.
Anyone holding a ticket for the Aug. 11 bobblehead giveaway or the Aug. 12 Pete Rose tribute can exchange their tickets for any remaining 2017 game, or receive a refund at any Citizens Bank Park sales window. Fans can also mail their tickets to The Phillies, One Citizens Bank Park Way, Philadelphia, Pa., 19148, for a refund. The exchanges or refunds must be processed by Oct. 1, 2017, the Phillies said.
The recent uproar surrounding Rose grew from a sworn deposition released Monday from a woman identified as “Jane Doe” alleging that Rose had sexual relations with her in 1975, before she had turned 16. At the time, the age of consent in Ohio, where Rose lived while playing for the Cincinnati Reds, was 16. Rose has acknowledged the affair, but maintains that it was his belief that she was of legal age in Ohio.
Though the allegation would suggest alleged statutory rape, it was 42 years ago, long enough for the statute of limitations to have passed. The Phillies are under no such limits, and thus have made a decision that likely will cost them what would have been a sellout crowd.
In addition to the Wall of Fame cancellation, an Aug. 10 celebrity roast of Rose at the Crystal Tea Room in Philadelphia was canceled by comedian Joe Conklin. Proceeds were to benefit Coaches vs. Cancer. Tickets will be refunded.
Conklin said Wednesday that he tried to arrange an alternate celebrity to be roasted, but could find no one of the stature of Rose on such short notice. So the benefit was scrapped, though the comedian said he would attempt in some way to benefit the charity.
“It was a no-brainer,” Conklin said. “People want no part of him at this point. There is nothing funny about this.
“The unfortunate thing is that, up until this, he was beloved here. He put the Phillies over the top. He put Schmitty (Mike Schmidt) over the top. He put us over the top. It was going to be a fun night. But not now.”
Also Wednesday, the SugarHouse Casino in Philadelphia announced it had canceled a scheduled Aug. 12 Rose autograph session and will refund all ticket money.
Rose has been banned from baseball since 1989, when a report from John Dowd, a special counsel to baseball commissioner A. Bartlett Giamatti, showed a pattern of Rose betting on professional baseball while managing the Reds. Though there was no allegation that he’d ever bet on his team to lose, such activity is punishable by a lifetime ban from the sport.
In recent years, however, the restrictions against Rose, 76, were softened, allowing him to appear in certain approved ballpark ceremonies. The Phillies had such permission to honor Rose, who played for them from 1979 through 1983, helping them win the 1980 World Series. His 4,256 career hits are a baseball record.
The situation involving the allegations of sexual misconduct came to light when Rose filed suit against Dowd, contending he defamed him on a radio show on WCHE in West Chester. The suit alleges that Dowd said that Michael Bertolini, an associate of Rose’s, “ran young girls” to the ballplayer during spring training. For that, Rose contends, his earning potential was compromised. Bertolini’s attorneys have denied the charge.
Rose’s attorney, Ray Genco, was quoted by the New York Times as saying, “at this point, it’s just a big distraction,” adding that Dowd has dragged, “Pete’s name through the mud.”
The Phillies announced their Wall of Fame plans for Rose in April.
“I am very honored to be inducted into the Phillies Wall of Fame,” Rose said at the time, in a statement. “My baseball years in Philadelphia were amazing, not just because we won it all in 1980 and came close in 1983, but also because the fans welcomed me from day one. The team’s great ownership and talented roster attracted me to Philadelphia as a free agent. I knew we could experience great success.”
The Phillies offered no other public comment Wednesday, other than a press release stating that, “due to recent events, the Phillies and Pete Rose have decided that Pete will not participate in the Phillies Alumni Weekend festivities to be held at Citizens Bank Park on August 10-13, 2017.”