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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The game of baseball is the "National Pastime"; it
3is an institution that transcends the realm of sport and has
4become an integral part of the American experience; the game,
5and those players that make it such an enjoyable and communal
6event, has been a part of the American way of life for well
7over a century; and
 
8    WHEREAS, The State of Illinois has been a proud producer of
9talent and supporter of the game of baseball, standing as the
10proud home of 2 of the most distinguished franchises in Major
11League Baseball (MLB) history, the Chicago Cubs and the Chicago
12White Sox; and
 
13    WHEREAS, Players including former Chicago Cub, Joe Girardi
14(from Peoria), former White Sox, Jim Thome (from Peoria),
15former New York Yankee, Rickey Henderson (Chicago native),
16former St. Louis Cardinal, Jason Isringhausen (from Brighton),
17and current Washington National, Jayson Werth, born in the
18State's capital of Springfield, are only but a few Illinoisans
19who have contributed to the game over the years, and they
20represent the importance that the game has on baseball fans and
21enthusiasts here in the Land of Lincoln; and
 
22    WHEREAS, The Chicago Cubs and Chicago White Sox

 

 

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1organizations, being 2 of the most historic teams in baseball,
2have contributed much to the game and have had the privilege to
3have a number of their players recognized in the National
4Baseball Hall of Fame located in Cooperstown, New York; and
 
5    WHEREAS, It is understood that induction into the Hall of
6Fame is one of the most incredible rewards and honors that can
7be bestowed upon an MLB player; the Hall represents all of the
8principles that the game of baseball embodies and demands of
9those players who compete for a chance to, one day, have the
10opportunity to win a World Series and be admitted into
11Cooperstown; and
 
12    WHEREAS, The game of baseball is also a game that is played
13by the rules, and the "Big Leaguers" that play the game are
14expected to play by those rules; nevertheless, those rules and
15regulations are, at times, presented an exceptional case - one
16that needs to be considered in more than a standard, uniform
17manner; and
 
18    WHEREAS, In recent times, the integrity of the game of
19baseball has been sullied, adulterated by the introduction of
20performance enhancing drugs (PEDs); the use of PEDs has
21introduced an added challenge to the game, resulting in certain
22users of those substances receiving an unfair advantage on the
23field; this abuse of the rules of the game is something that

 

 

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1owners and players, both past and present, will continue to
2deal with; and
 
3    WHEREAS, Former MLB Commissioner Bud Selig met this problem
4head-on and took measures that ultimately resulted in new
5restrictions and steeper penalties for those players found in
6violation of the revised rules on the use of PEDs; yet, there
7are players who have been found guilty of abusing these
8restricted substances but remain eligible to be considered for
9induction into the Hall of Fame; and
 
10    WHEREAS, The punishment for players found guilty of having
11used PEDs, some of whom hold ground-breaking records, have
12devoted many years to our nation's pastime, and have fans
13across the country and world, is fair; and
 
14    WHEREAS, There remains one exceptional case before MLB -
15the case of Pete Rose, otherwise known as "Charlie Hustle"; and
 
16    WHEREAS, Pete Rose, born Peter Edward Rose, is one of the
17most remarkable individuals to have ever played the game, as
18his career statistics substantiate; he is also one of the most
19popular Cincinnati Reds player to ever have put on the uniform,
20most notably as part of the "Big Red Machine"; and
 
21    WHEREAS, Pete Rose is a career .303 hitter; in his 14,053

 

 

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1at-bats, he totaled 160 home runs, 1,314 runs-batted-in, and
22,165 runs scored; he holds the MLB record for total hits with
34,256; and
 
4    WHEREAS, A Cincinnati native, Pete Rose is a hometown hero
5who brought more than 2 decades of entertainment, excitement,
6and prestige to "The Queen City"; among his many achievements,
7he won the Rookie of the Year Award in 1963, 3 World Series
8titles, and one Most Valuable Player award; he won 3 batting
9titles, 2 Gold Gloves, and took part in 17 All-Star Games as a
10first, second, and third baseman and left and right-fielder;
11and
 
12    WHEREAS, Pete Rose served as manager for the Cincinnati
13Reds from 1984 to 1989, accumulating a record of 426 wins and
14388 losses; and
 
15    WHEREAS, In 1989, MLB Commissioner A. Bartlett Giamatti
16issued a permanent, lifetime ban on Pete Rose after accusations
17arose surrounding his involvement in illicit gambling,
18outlawed by MLB's Rule 21; and
 
19    WHEREAS, A fault was committed, and Pete Rose has since
20admitted to having illegally bet on his team as manager of the
21Cincinnati Reds; the illegality of his actions are undeniable
22and his punishment was deserved; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, The game that Americans love and enjoy needs to be
2respected and cannot be subject to misconduct by any player,
3manager, or owner; every team should have the same access to
4the opportunity of winning, and all games should be played on
5the level; and
 
6    WHEREAS, Consideration for the National Baseball Hall of
7Fame has been granted to players that have been linked to the
8abuse of banned substances; this decision, while controversial
9and the subject of much debate among current and former
10baseball players and sports writers, has been decided to be
11fair treatment given to otherwise guilty players that committed
12a wrong against the institution of baseball; and
 
13    WHEREAS, Players such as Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Mark
14McGwire, and Sammy Sosa have been granted enough of a reprieve
15that they have had, at the very least, an opportunity to be
16considered for induction into baseball's most sacred
17fraternity; they have been signaled and reprimanded for their
18past actions; yet, they have been allowed to have their "day in
19court"; Pete Rose's career and legacy should earn him the same
20leniency and treatment; and
 
21    WHEREAS, Speaking before a crowd of devoted fans and
22onlookers in Normal, where he was invited to act as "Manager

 

 

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1for a Day" for the Normal CornBelters of the independent
2Illinois Frontier League, Pete Rose sincerely stated, "There
3comes a time when you see all your friends go in the Hall of
4Fame. To think that you could be a member of the Hall of Fame,
5it would be goosebumpy. A Hall of Fame is more for your fans
6and your family. And a lot of the people responsible for me
7being a baseball player aren't here [any] more."; He added, "I
8got 6 grandkids that would love to go to Cooperstown. I got 2
9daughters and 2 sons who would love to go to Cooperstown ... It
10would mean a lot to them. It would mean a lot to anybody".; and
 
11    WHEREAS, Although Pete Rose committed an injustice against
12his fans, players, and Major League Baseball, the punishment
13should be reconsidered; he is a legendary sports figure who
14commands the respect of even the harshest of his critics; and
 
15    WHEREAS, With the permission of Major League Baseball, Pete
16Rose was recognized by the Cincinnati Reds organization on
17September 11, 2010 for the 25th anniversary of his 4,192nd hit,
18which put him past the previous hits-leader, Ty Cobb, and, most
19recently, during the 2015 All-Star Game in Cincinnati, Ohio on
20July 14, 2015; and
 
21    WHEREAS, No greater recognition can be offered to Pete Rose
22than allowing his name to be considered by the voting members
23of the Baseball Writers' Association of America for induction

 

 

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1into the National Baseball Hall of Fame after his 26th year of
2a lifetime ban from the sport that was, and continues to be,
3his livelihood; therefore, be it
 
4    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
5NINETY-NINTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we
6urge Major League Baseball Commissioner, Rob Manfred, to
7reconsider the case of Pete Rose and work towards reinstating
8him as a testament to his legendary achievements and
9contribution to the game of baseball; and be it further
 
10    RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be
11delivered to Pete Rose; MLB Commissioner, Rob Manfred; Chicago
12Cubs owner, Thomas Ricketts; Chicago White Sox Chairman, Jerry
13Reinsdorf; Cincinnati Reds Chief Executive Officer, Robert
14"Bob" Castellini; and the National Baseball Hall of Fame in
15Cooperstown, New York.