Morgan Wants Rose to ‘Come Clean’

Pete Rose has at least one Hall of Fame member’s support for his reinstatement to baseball.

Rose’s former teammate Joe Morgan said the all-time hit leader should be reinstated if he’s willing to “come clean” on the actions that prompted late Commissioner Bart Giamatti to ban him from the game for life in 1989.

“Pete needed to be punished because he did something that hurt the game,” Morgan told Bloomberg News. “I think he’s been punished enough, and he should be reinstated.

“But if he wants people to feel he’s reformed,” he said, “he needs to admit whatever happened. You wouldn’t take a lifetime ban if you didn’t do something wrong.”

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The San Diego Padres could move after the 1999 season if the team and the city can’t agree this week on how to pay for a new ballpark, the team’s majority owner said.

The Padres have been trying for the last 18 months to negotiate an agreement with the city to build a new stadium that would be publicly and privately funded. The team’s lease at Qualcomm Stadium expires at the end of the 1999 season.

Majority owner John Moores has said the Padres must be playing in a new ballpark by the 2001 season.

The San Diego City Council is scheduled to discuss the issue today at a closed session.

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Lee Smith, baseball’s career save leader, will join the Class-AA Jackson Generals for three Texas League games this weekend in Shreveport, La.

Smith, 40, retired midway through last season but signed a minor league contract last month with the Houston Astros.

He has been with triple-A New Orleans.

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Right-hander J.M. Gold, regarded as the premier high school pitcher in the major league draft, signed with the Milwaukee Brewers.

The 13th pick in the June draft is believed to have received a $1.65-million signing bonus.

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Cleveland’s Omar Vizquel recently became baseball’s career leader in fielding percentage for shortstops with at least 1,000 games. His .981 percentage puts him ahead of Larry Bowa and Tony Fernandez (.980).

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The Kansas City Royals’ directors said they have given up on finding a new owner by the All-Star break and hope to find a buyer by September.