Trump Plans To Issue Posthumous Pardon For Baseball Great Pete Rose

President Donald Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform on Friday that he is planning to issue Major League Baseball legend Pete Rose a posthumous pardon.

“Major League Baseball didn’t have the courage or decency to put the late, great, Pete Rose, also known as ‘Charlie Hustle,’ into the Baseball Hall of Fame. Now he is dead, will never experience the thrill of being selected, even though he was a FAR BETTER PLAYER than most of those who made it, and can only be named posthumously,” Trump wrote.

“WHAT A SHAME! Anyway, over the next few weeks I will be signing a complete PARDON of Pete Rose, who shouldn’t have been gambling on baseball, but only bet on HIS TEAM WINNING. He never betted against himself, or the other team. He had the most hits, by far, in baseball history, and won more games than anyone in sports history. Baseball, which is dying all over the place, should get off its fat, lazy ass, and elect Pete Rose, even though far too late, into the Baseball Hall of Fame!” the president added.

Rose, who passed away last year at the age of 83, was permanently banned from baseball. In 2004, he admitted to betting on games but maintained that he never wagered against his own team. In 2015, Commissioner Rob Manfred denied Rose’s request for reinstatement, ESPN reported.

Pete Rose, of the Cincinatti Reds, crouches on the field before a game at Shea Stadium in Flushing Meadows-Corona Park, Queens, New York, New York, July 24, 1978. The game, against the New York Mets, resulted in Rose increasing his hitting streak to 37 consecutive games (the streak eventually lasted 44 games). (Photo by Gary Gershoff/Getty Images)

Trump did not specify the details of the pardon. Rose served five months in prison after pleading guilty to tax evasion in 1990.

In a statement to ESPN, John Dowd, who conducted the investigation into Rose on behalf of MLB in 1989 and served as Trump’s lawyer seven years ago, noted that MLB is “not in the pardon business nor does it control admission to the HOF.”

Rose, who spent the majority of his career with the Cincinnati Reds from 1963 to 1986, won three World Series titles and still holds Major League Baseball records for career hits, games played, at-bats, singles, and outs, ESPN reported.

“Rose was league MVP in 1973, a 17-time All-Star, three-time batting title winner, Rookie of the Year and World Series MVP,” Fox News added.

Rose sought reinstatement in both 2020 and 2022, particularly as legalized sports betting expanded nationwide. However, Commissioner Rob Manfred rejected both requests, deferring any Hall of Fame considerations to the Veterans Committee. In 2023, Manfred again dismissed speculation about Rose’s reinstatement, citing the league’s partnerships with sportsbooks as a complicating factor.

Though he remains excluded from the Baseball Hall of Fame, the Cincinnati Reds honored Rose by inducting him into their team’s hall of fame in 2016 and retiring his No. 14 jersey. Before his passing, he continued to make appearances at MLB ballparks in recent years, Fox noted further.

Meanwhile, Trump signed an executive order on Friday declaring English the official language of the United States.

According to a White House official, the order overturned a 2000 mandate from President Clinton requiring federally funded entities to provide language assistance to non-English speakers.

The Washington Times reported that the U.S. will formally designate an official language for the first time in its 249-year history.

According to a White House summary of the order obtained by The Wall Street Journal, agencies will still have the option to provide documents and services in languages other than English. The summary states that the purpose of establishing English as the national language is to promote unity, improve government efficiency, and create a pathway to civic engagement.

During the recent presidential campaign, Trump warned that non-English-speaking migrants were being “dropped” into communities like Springfield, Ohio. He also expressed concerns that migrant students who don’t speak English are struggling to communicate in classrooms.

“We have languages coming into our country. We don’t have one instructor in our entire nation that can speak that language,” Trump said last year. “These are languages—it’s the craziest thing—they have languages that nobody in this country has ever heard of. It’s a very horrible thing.”