White Sox To Play Cincinnati Reds On Pete Rose Night

CINCINNATI – The White Sox are in town for a historic day at Great American Ballpark.

Wednesday is Pete Rose Night, a celebration of the Reds' three-time World Series champion and 17-time All-Star whose MLB career as a player and manager in Cincinnati spanned from 1963-89.

The game is scheduled for 7:14 p.m. ET in recognition of his No. 14 jersey, which was retired in 2016 when he was inducted into the Reds Hall of Fame. All fans in attendance will receive a No. 14 replica jersey, while other events include a pregame Q&A with Reds Hall of Famers, a video tribute, moment of remembrance and more.

Pete Rose Night also comes one day after a notable policy decision by MLB commissioner Rob Manfred. Rose had been on MLB's permanently ineligible list since 1989 after it was found that he bet on Major League games. But on Tuesday, Manfred concluded that permanent ineligibility ends upon the passing of the disciplined individual.

Rose died at age 83 on Sept. 30, 2024. So as a result of Manfred's ruling, Rose and 16 others are off the permanent ineligibility list and can be elected into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

The ruling also affects former White Sox players, and on Tuesday the team issued a statement.

"Major League Baseball’s decision today allows for 17 players, including eight members of the 1919 White Sox team, to now be eligible for consideration for the Hall of Fame. These players will have the opportunity to be considered by the Hall of Fame’s Classic Era Committee in December 2027, and the White Sox trust that the process currently in place will thoughtfully evaluate each player’s contributions to the game."

White Sox manager Will Venable's father, Max, played for the Reds from 1985-87, overlapping for two seasons with Rose as a player/manager and one season as a manager. Prior to Tuesday's game, Will recalled his father sharing memories of playing alongside Rose, who has the most hits, at-bats, plate appearances and games played in MLB history.

"More than anything, I think the toughness," Venable said. "Just a guy that went out there and played extremely hard all the time. I remember a lot of stories about that. Then just his ability to hit more than anything. It was always about playing hard."

As for his thoughts on Rose being removed from the permanently ineligible list, Venable offered a few comments.

"Yeah, it's interesting. Obviously Pete's got a complicated legacy, and there's a lot of different thoughts. I think broadly, I probably fit in the category of I'm excited to see it," Venable said. "I think obviously everything that he's done on the field is amazing. My dad played with him and had great things to say about him and obviously his ability. So yeah, I think that skill set and what he accomplished will be recognized."

Whether Manfred's decision was overdue or not is another consideration, one Venable will let others debate.

"I don't know if that's for me to say," Venable said. "Every one of these things has a process, and he broke the rules and had to deal with the consequences. But I'm glad to see that he's been reinstated, and I know that fans around the game are happy also."

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