The king is dead. Pete Rose, Cincinnati native, and baseball’s all-time hits leader, passed away on Monday at the age of 83, as confirmed by his agent Ryan Fiterman through a TMZ report.
Baseball banned Rose in 1989 for gambling while he managed his hometown team, the Reds, at the peak of his career. This ban came just four years after Rose broke Ty Cobb’s long-standing hit record, which still remains unchallenged.
With 4,256 hits, Pete Rose holds the record for the most hits in MLB history.
Despite his achievements, the lifetime ban kept Rose, originally from Sedamsville, out of the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York. He still holds several records for his career and single seasons.
In addition to his hit record, Pete Rose played in more games. He had more at-bats, reached base more often, and hit more singles than anyone in the history of baseball. He also holds the record for making the most outs in MLB history.
For fans who grew up in the 60s and 70s, there was no player more thrilling than Rose. Wearing the Cincinnati Reds’ No. 14 jersey was the man everyone adored. Known as “Charlie Hustle,” Rose was a confident and bold player with shaggy hair, a puggish nose, and strong forearms. He played with a throwback style. Always sprinting to first base, even after a walk, and crouching at the plate with intensity.
Major League Baseball, which banned him in 1989, released a short statement offering condolences. They acknowledged his “greatness, grit, and determination on the field.” Bob Castellini, the Reds’ principal owner and managing partner, also said that Rose was “one of the fiercest competitors the game has ever seen,” reminding everyone to “never forget what he accomplished.”
Pete Rose earned the title of Rookie of the Year in 1963. However, he started slowly by going 0 for 12 with three walks and a hit by pitch before securing his first hit—a triple in the eighth inning against Pittsburgh’s Bob Friend. This hit came on April 13, 1963, just one day before his 22nd birthday. Rose reached 1,000 hits in 1968, followed by 2,000 five years later, and 3,000 another five years after that.
He moved into second place in all-time hits, passing Hank Aaron, with his 3,772nd hit in 1982. His 4,000th hit came off the Phillies’ Jerry Koosman in 1984, exactly 21 years to the day of his first hit. Rose tied Ty Cobb’s record on September 8, 1985, and broke it three days later in Cincinnati, with his mother and teenage son, Pete Jr., watching from the stands.
Pete Rose married twice and entered a relationship with model Kiana Kim in 2011. The couple starred in a reality TV show, Pete Rose: Hits and Mrs. in 2013. Rose had four children.
His eldest son, Pete Rose Jr., spent more than a decade playing in the minors and independent baseball but only appeared in 11 major league games with the Reds in 1997, managing two career hits.
The Reds retired his No. 14, and in 1999, fans voted him onto the All-Century Team. They announced the team during that year’s All-Star Game in Boston, where Pete Rose received a standing ovation. Only three players on the list of 30 weren’t Hall of Famers. Roger Clemens and Mark McGwire were excluded due to steroid allegations that surfaced after the team’s selection.
“I owe baseball,” Rose said in a 2004 interview with Gibson. “Baseball doesn’t owe me a damn thing. I owe baseball. And the only way I can make my peace with baseball is taking this negative and somehow making it into a positive.”
© Cara Owsley/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
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