Whenever you turn on any sporting event these days, you notice one thing very prominently: gambling.
The games are brought to you by it, the sports leagues and networks partner with it, and the talking heads talk about it.
We're all encouraged to gamble on our favorite sports, whether it be with the spread, money line, prop bets or parlays. We're encouraged to track our bets on our phone apps, and then we're encouraged to watch entire shows - and entire networks - dedicated to gambling.
Apparently that isn't enough to change baseball's stance on Pete Rose, though. It doesn't matter that the leagues and networks are making millions off gambling companies, the all-time hit king is still banned for betting on baseball.
Major League Commissioner Rob Manfred addressed the situation at the All-Star events on Tuesday, which was transcribed by Bob Nightengale of USA Today.
Rob Manfred says that #MLB's relationship with gambling has no effect on Pete Rose's suspension.
"Pete Rose violated what is Rule 1 in baseball, the consequences of that are in the rule. We continue to abide by our own rules.''
As a result of his lifetime ban, Rose has not been voted into the Hall of Fame. The 82-year-old was a 17-time All-Star, a three-time World Series champion, a three-time batting champion, a two-time Gold Glove winner, a Rookie of the Year winner, and an MVP winner.
He amassed 4,256 hits and was a lifetime .303 hitter with a .375 on-base percentage. He spent 24 years in the majors with the Phillies, Reds and Expos.
He was banned for life from baseball in 1989 after it was determined he had bet on baseball while he was both a player and a manager for the Reds.
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