REST IN PEACE - PETE ROSE
Pete Rose was one of the greatest baseball hitters of all time.  In fact, he collected the most hits EVER with a total of 4,256.  No other player even achieved exceeding 4,000 hits except Ty Cobb who collected 4,189.  Pete also currently holds the record for most at-bats (14,053), plate appearances (15,890), and games played (3,562) during his 24 years in the majors.  That says a lot but still not enough about Pete.  Before I get into why he was one of the greatest of all time, here are just some of his other accolades:

Rookie of the Year (1963)
World Series Championships (1975 & 1976 with the Reds/1980 with the Phillies)
World Series MVP (1975)
National Legue MVP (1973)
Named to the All-Star Century team (1999)
Silver Bat Award (1968)
Sporting News Player of the Year (1968)
Gold Glove Award - Outfielder (1969 & 1970)
Lou Gehrig Memorial Award (1969)
17-Time All Star (at 5 different positions!)
 
In 1989 an investigation found Pete guilty of utilizing illegal bookies to bet on MLB games during Pete’s professional years.  Two Commissioners of Baseball (Bart Giamatti and then Fay Vincent) were involved with two key bans of Pete:  one in a formal agreement signed by Pete banning him from baseball for life in an agreement that was worded to avoid any personal wrongdoing admission by Pete and the other banning him from being enshrined into the Baseball Hall of Fame.  Pete finally admitted 25 years later that he bet on MLB games as a manager, and 10 years after that, he admitted he also bet on MLB games as a player.
 
I totally respect Pete Rose, “The Player” but I disrespect Pete Rose “The Person”:
 
The Player
The aforementioned stats above tell a lot about Pete’s achievements as a player.  (By the way, he was also successful as a manager with 426 wins against 388 loses with many so-so teams to manage.)  I remember watching him a long time ago and hearing a remark from my Father proudly pointing out (after Pete got one of his usual singles) how disruptive Pete was at first base, causing the pitcher to constantly throw over to first base (there were no restricted throws back then).  The pitchers hated having Pete on base because of his masterful distractions.  All top base-stealers (Rickey Henderson, Tim Raines, etc.) did that, but Pete didn’t have their natural and superb speed to help him.  He was simply brilliant as a player.  Those base-stealing moments along with his uncanny knowledge to know when to extend a single into an added base, or two, was why he was rightfully nicknamed “Charlie Hustle”.  It’s unfortunate that most MLB players today don’t come close to that kind of unrelenting hustle.  A lot of them are either avoiding injury too often or they just don’t have the great instincts Pete had (and used).
 
 
The Person
Pete as "The Player" had many challenges but so did Pete as "The Person" inside and outside of baseball.  I’ve listened to numerous remarks from Pete, and it was clear that he had no filter.  His focal point was always with a winning/competitive drive, even if he purposely or inadvertently ridiculed others harshly.  He was very obnoxious and arrogant even with his comments in his final year of life, including some of the commentary he offered on networked broadcasts.
 
I have no doubt that his egotistical character hurt him from being forgiven by the commissioners and ultimately from being considered for an election into the Baseball Hall of Fame.  Overall, in my opinion, the Baseball Hall of Fame should include the greatest players who produced numbers in which only a few can.  Pete clearly did that.  Some folks either support or deny any induction of the players who used steroids to cheat.  I agree with the latter; however, none of Pete’s stats are from any physical enhancement drug.  He produced every single one of them solely.  Each hit or base-running achievement was accomplished by Pete through his own physical or mental abilities.
 
As a player, he will always be a Hall of Famer to me.  I will remember him fully being Charlie Hustle and I’ll typically envision his superman slides whereby his hands and arms were stretched out with his eyes focused on the base for the most strategic and competitive slide.
 
Rest in Peace, Pete Rose and thanks so much for your “Player” years!

WILL THE YANKEES’ “BYE” LEAD TO A “GOODBYE” OR “HELLO” TO THEIR 28th WORLD SERIES CHAMPIONSHIP?

Well, unlike last season when the NYY only won 82 games, this year’s team won 94 games and have made their way into the playoffs!  Not only that, but they won the most games in the American League this season, making them the number one seed.  That successful result earned them a “bye” whereby they can simply sit back and watch the #3 through #6 teams play their first rounds with the hopes of even making it to their next playoff level (the level where the Yankees are already).  Those first-round games in the American League consist of the Detroit Tigers (#6 seed) playing against the Houston Astros (#3 seed) and the Kansas City Royals (#5 seed) playing against the Baltimore Orioles (#4 seed).  Because the Yankees have the best record in the American League, they also earned a homefield advantage against whomever their American League opponent becomes – which would be either the Royals or the Orioles for the ALDS (American League Division Series).  The Cleveland Guardians (#2 seed), likewise, would await their opponent of either the Tigers or the Astros (you might want to spell their first syllable with an extra “s”).

As usual, teams always lose some valuable players to injury prior to the playoffs.  In the case of the Yankees, those players include Anthony Rizzo (broken pair of fingers from a hit-by-pitch/he had just regained his decent hitting and great defensive forms), Nestor Cortes (elbow pain/he was pitching to a very good 1.153 WHIP), and Jake Cousins (right pectoral strain/with an impressive 1.053 WHIP).  Cousins may return in time for the first round while Rizzo is iffy for the first round.  Cortes is not expected back at all, but you never know.

Like all of the teams in MLB this season, there was a lack of consistent dominance.  In fact, there wasn’t even a team that won 100 games this season!  That inconsistency and lack of overwhelming dominance makes this season’s playoff predictions overly unpredictable.  Of course, some stats can be weighed, but none overly convincing.  Can the Yankees win it all?  Of course, but that answer could support any of the playoff teams.