Seaver, Fingers Hope Rose Will Join Them

The newest members of the Hall of Fame hope Pete Rose can join them in Cooperstown some day.

Tom Seaver and Rollie Fingers appeared together as Hall of Famers for the first time on Wednesday.

Seaver set the record most observers once thought would belong to Rose when Seaver received a record 98.8% of the vote by the Baseball Writers Assn. of America.

Rose was placed on baseball’s ineligible list on Aug. 23, 1989, by the late commissioner A. Bartlett Giamatti. The commissioner concluded after a six-month investigation that Rose bet on baseball games, including those involving the Cincinnati Reds while managing the team.

The doors of Cooperstown were locked on Rose last year when the Hall’s directors voted, 12-0, to bar him from its ballot.

“This is a country in which we forgive and we forget--and we do forgive,” said Seaver, 311-205 lifetime. “I played against Pete for many years, and I played with Pete for many years. He’s one of the greats of all time. I think deep down if I had to pick an emotion to voice about Pete it would be that in the spirit of forgiveness that Pete one day will be able to be in the Hall of Fame.”

Fingers would also like baseball to forgive Rose some day, too.

“You look at what Pete did on the field as a player and his numbers are the tops,” said Fingers, the all-time saves leader with 341. “I look at what the man did on the field. He has a black eye right now, but black eyes have a tendency to go away and I feel someday I would like to see him in.”