Pete Rose writes letter to MLB commissioner pleading for Hall of Fame consideration

Pete Rose, Major League Baseball's all-time hits leader, is not giving up on his quest to get inducted into the Hall of Fame.

Rose, 81, recently penned an emotional letter to commissioner Rob Manfred pleading with him for consideration to be elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame.

He has been banned from baseball since Aug. 24, 1989, when he agreed to a lifetime ban after admitting to betting on Cincinnati Reds games that he was managing. That has removed him from consideration from the Hall of Fame despite having more hits than any player in league history. 

Rose's letter to Manfred was obtained by TMZ.

In it Rose writes:

"I am writing today for three reasons. First, because at my age I want to be 100% sure that you understand how much I mean it when I say that I'm sorry. Second, to ask for your forgiveness. And third, because I still think every day about what it would mean to be considered for the Hall of Fame."

He also added that other than his family, nothing made him happier than playing baseball in front of fans. 

He wrote: "That I let them down and brought shame to the sport we all love is something I think about every single day."  

You can read the entire letter here. 

Rose spent 24 years in the major leagues as a player with the Cincinnati Reds, Philadelphia Phillies and Montreal Expos, tallying 4,256 career hits.

He also managed the Reds for six years. In three of those years he was a player/manager. 

Rose has been campaigning to be in the Hall of Fame for years, but Manfred has shown no sign that he is willing to budge on the ban. In 2015 Manfred denied Rose for reinstatement and said he had "little confidence that [Rose] has a mature understanding of his wrongful conduct, that he has accepted full responsibility for it, or that he understands the damage he has caused. In short, Mr. Rose has not presented credible evidence of a reconfigured life."