Full Text of HR0667 99th General Assembly
HR0667 99TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
| | HR0667 | | LRB099 13244 MST 37219 r |
|
| 1 | | HOUSE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, The game of baseball is the "National Pastime"; it | 3 | | is an institution that transcends the
realm of sport and has | 4 | | become an integral part of the American experience; the game, | 5 | | and those
players that make it such an enjoyable and communal | 6 | | event, has been a part of the American way
of life for well | 7 | | over a century; and
| 8 | | WHEREAS, The State of Illinois has been a proud producer of | 9 | | talent and supporter of the
game of baseball, standing as the | 10 | | proud home of 2 of the most distinguished franchises in
Major | 11 | | League Baseball (MLB) history, the Chicago Cubs and the Chicago | 12 | | White Sox; and
| 13 | | WHEREAS, Players including former Chicago Cub, Joe Girardi | 14 | | (from Peoria), former White
Sox, Jim Thome (from Peoria), | 15 | | former New York Yankee, Rickey Henderson (Chicago native),
| 16 | | former St. Louis Cardinal, Jason Isringhausen (from Brighton), | 17 | | and current Washington
National, Jayson Werth, born in the | 18 | | State's capital of Springfield, are only but a few Illinoisans
| 19 | | who have contributed to the game over the years, and they | 20 | | represent the importance that the game has on
baseball fans and | 21 | | enthusiasts here in the Land of Lincoln; and | 22 | | WHEREAS, The Chicago Cubs and Chicago White Sox |
| | | HR0667 | - 2 - | LRB099 13244 MST 37219 r |
|
| 1 | | organizations, being 2 of the most
historic teams in baseball, | 2 | | have contributed much to the game and have had the privilege to | 3 | | have
a number of their players recognized in the National | 4 | | Baseball Hall of Fame located in Cooperstown,
New York; and | 5 | | WHEREAS, It is understood that induction into the Hall of | 6 | | Fame is one of the most incredible
rewards and honors that can | 7 | | be bestowed upon an MLB player; the Hall represents all of
the | 8 | | principles that the game of baseball embodies and demands of | 9 | | those players who compete for a chance to, one day, have the | 10 | | opportunity to win a World Series and
be admitted into | 11 | | Cooperstown; and | 12 | | WHEREAS, The game of baseball is also a game that is played | 13 | | by the rules, and the "Big
Leaguers" that play the game are | 14 | | expected to play by those rules; nevertheless, those rules and
| 15 | | regulations are, at times, presented an exceptional case - one | 16 | | that needs to be considered
in more than a standard, uniform | 17 | | manner; and | 18 | | WHEREAS, In recent times, the integrity of the game of | 19 | | baseball has been sullied, adulterated
by the introduction of | 20 | | performance enhancing drugs (PEDs); the use of PEDs has | 21 | | introduced an added challenge to the game, resulting in certain | 22 | | users
of those substances receiving an unfair advantage on the | 23 | | field; this abuse of the rules of the game
is something that |
| | | HR0667 | - 3 - | LRB099 13244 MST 37219 r |
|
| 1 | | owners and players, both past and present, will continue to | 2 | | deal with; and | 3 | | WHEREAS, Former MLB Commissioner Bud Selig met this problem | 4 | | head-on and took measures that
ultimately resulted in new | 5 | | restrictions and steeper penalties for those players found in | 6 | | violation
of the revised rules on the use of PEDs; yet, there | 7 | | are players who have been found guilty of abusing these | 8 | | restricted substances but remain eligible to be considered for | 9 | | induction into the
Hall of Fame; and | 10 | | WHEREAS, The punishment for players found guilty of having | 11 | | used PEDs, some of whom hold ground-breaking records, have | 12 | | devoted
many years to our nation's pastime, and have fans | 13 | | across the country and world, is fair; and | 14 | | WHEREAS, There remains one exceptional case before MLB - | 15 | | the case of Pete
Rose, otherwise known as "Charlie Hustle"; and | 16 | | WHEREAS, Pete Rose, born Peter Edward Rose, is one of the | 17 | | most remarkable individuals to
have ever played the game, as | 18 | | his career statistics substantiate; he is also one of the
most | 19 | | popular Cincinnati Reds player to ever have put on the uniform, | 20 | | most notably as part of the "Big Red Machine"; and | 21 | | WHEREAS, Pete Rose is a career .303 hitter; in his 14,053 |
| | | HR0667 | - 4 - | LRB099 13244 MST 37219 r |
|
| 1 | | at-bats, he totaled 160 home runs, 1,314 runs-batted-in, and | 2 | | 2,165 runs scored; he holds the MLB record for total hits with | 3 | | 4,256; and | 4 | | WHEREAS, A Cincinnati native, Pete Rose is a hometown hero | 5 | | who brought more than 2
decades of entertainment, excitement, | 6 | | and prestige to "The Queen City"; among his many
achievements, | 7 | | he won the Rookie of the Year Award in 1963, 3 World Series | 8 | | titles,
and one Most Valuable Player award; he won 3 batting | 9 | | titles, 2 Gold Gloves, and took
part in 17 All-Star Games as a | 10 | | first, second, and third baseman and left and right-fielder; | 11 | | and | 12 | | WHEREAS, Pete Rose served as manager for the Cincinnati | 13 | | Reds from 1984 to 1989, accumulating a
record of 426 wins and | 14 | | 388 losses; and | 15 | | WHEREAS, In 1989, MLB Commissioner A. Bartlett Giamatti | 16 | | issued a permanent, lifetime ban on
Pete Rose after accusations | 17 | | arose surrounding his involvement in illicit gambling, | 18 | | outlawed by
MLB's Rule 21; and | 19 | | WHEREAS, A fault was committed, and Pete Rose has since | 20 | | admitted to having illegally bet
on his team as manager of the | 21 | | Cincinnati Reds; the illegality of his actions are undeniable | 22 | | and
his punishment was deserved; and |
| | | HR0667 | - 5 - | LRB099 13244 MST 37219 r |
|
| 1 | | WHEREAS, The game that Americans love and enjoy needs to be | 2 | | respected and cannot be
subject to misconduct by any player, | 3 | | manager, or owner; every team should have the same
access to | 4 | | the opportunity of winning, and all games should be played on | 5 | | the level; and | 6 | | WHEREAS, Consideration for the National Baseball Hall of | 7 | | Fame has been granted to players that have been
linked to the | 8 | | abuse of banned substances; this decision, while controversial | 9 | | and the subject of
much debate among current and former | 10 | | baseball players and sports writers, has been decided to
be | 11 | | fair treatment given to otherwise guilty players that committed | 12 | | a wrong against the institution
of baseball; and | 13 | | WHEREAS, Players such as Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Mark | 14 | | McGwire, and Sammy Sosa
have been granted enough of a reprieve | 15 | | that they have had, at the very least, an opportunity to be
| 16 | | considered for induction into baseball's most sacred | 17 | | fraternity; they have been signaled and
reprimanded for their | 18 | | past actions; yet, they have been allowed to have their "day in | 19 | | court";
Pete Rose's career and legacy should earn him the same | 20 | | leniency and treatment; and | 21 | | WHEREAS, Speaking before a crowd of devoted fans and | 22 | | onlookers in Normal, where
he was invited to act as "Manager |
| | | HR0667 | - 6 - | LRB099 13244 MST 37219 r |
|
| 1 | | for a Day" for the Normal CornBelters of the independent
| 2 | | Illinois Frontier League, Pete Rose sincerely stated, "There | 3 | | comes a time when you see all your
friends go in the Hall of | 4 | | Fame. To think that you could be a member of the Hall of Fame, | 5 | | it
would be goosebumpy. A Hall of Fame is more for your fans | 6 | | and your family. And a lot of the
people responsible for me | 7 | | being a baseball player aren't here [any] more."; He added, "I | 8 | | got 6
grandkids that would love to go to Cooperstown. I got 2 | 9 | | daughters and 2 sons who would
love to go to Cooperstown ... It | 10 | | would mean a lot to them. It would mean a lot to anybody".; and
| 11 | | WHEREAS, Although Pete Rose committed an injustice against | 12 | | his fans, players, and Major League
Baseball, the punishment | 13 | | should be reconsidered; he is a legendary sports figure who | 14 | | commands
the respect of even the harshest of his critics; and
| 15 | | WHEREAS, With the permission of Major League Baseball, Pete | 16 | | Rose was recognized by the Cincinnati Reds
organization on | 17 | | September 11, 2010 for the 25th anniversary of his
4,192nd hit, | 18 | | which put him past the previous hits-leader, Ty Cobb, and, most
| 19 | | recently, during the 2015 All-Star Game in Cincinnati, Ohio on | 20 | | July 14, 2015; and
| 21 | | WHEREAS, No greater recognition can be offered to Pete Rose | 22 | | than allowing his name to be
considered by the voting members | 23 | | of the Baseball Writers' Association of America for induction |
| | | HR0667 | - 7 - | LRB099 13244 MST 37219 r |
|
| 1 | | into the National Baseball Hall of Fame after his 26th year of | 2 | | a lifetime
ban from the sport that was, and continues to be, | 3 | | his livelihood; therefore, be it
| 4 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE | 5 | | NINETY-NINTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we | 6 | | urge Major League Baseball Commissioner, Rob Manfred, to | 7 | | reconsider the case of Pete Rose and work towards reinstating | 8 | | him as a testament to his legendary achievements and | 9 | | contribution to the game of baseball; and be it further
| 10 | | RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be | 11 | | delivered to Pete Rose; MLB Commissioner, Rob Manfred;
Chicago | 12 | | Cubs owner, Thomas Ricketts; Chicago White Sox Chairman, Jerry | 13 | | Reinsdorf;
Cincinnati Reds Chief Executive Officer, Robert | 14 | | "Bob" Castellini; and the National Baseball Hall of Fame in | 15 | | Cooperstown, New York.
|
|