Rob Manfred: Pete Rose will be part of All-Star Game

Could Major League Baseball be in the early stages of lifting the lifetime ban from baseball that was imposed against Pete Rose more than 25 years ago? The All-Star Game this summer could be a start.

On Thursday, new MLB commissioner Rob Manfred confirmed that Rose will be allowed to take part in some of the activities surrounding the Midsummer Classic, which is being held in his hometown of Cincinnati this season.

“I’ve agreed with Mr. Castellini that we’re going to have a conversation about what specific kind of participation the Reds are interested in, and we have not had that conversation yet,” Manfred told the Associated Press. “You can rest assured that he will about allowed to participate in some of the activities.”

Rose was officially banned from baseball on Aug. 24, 1989, amid allegations that he gambled on baseball while he was playing for and managing the Reds. He was been ruled “permanently ineligible” for the Hall of Fame. Rose applied for reinstatement in September 1997 and met with former MLB commissioner Bud Selig in November 2002. Selig has opted to pass the buck to Manfred.

Rose, who turned 74 earlier this month, once again applied for reinstatement in January. Manfred said the league is in the process of reviewing his request.

“We have gathered volumes, I mean literally volumes of documents, related to the original investigation,” he said. “They’re in the process of organizing those, preparing summaries so that I can review those documents.”

Rose is baseball’s all-time hits leader with 4,256 hits in 24 major league seasons. He recently expressed confidence that he will one day be elected to the Hall of Fame, though he doesn’t know if he will be alive to see that day. Maybe he’s working his way back, albeit very slowly.