Should Pete Rose be forgiven? Your Say

Pete Rose has been grabbing some of the spotlight in front of hometown crowds this week in Cincinnati, which hosted the All-Star Game on Tuesday. Letter to the editor:

The difference in attitude about Pete Rose between some young fans and older ones is simply that Rose lied again and again to older fans ("All-Star Game gives Pete Rose brief return to spotlight").

If the younger fans had been lied to, they would reject Rose, too. All the hits in the world don't make up for loss of trust. No one — young or old — accepts being lied to. It's as simple as trust. Rose blatantly betrayed it.

Tony Macklin; Las Vegas

Comments from Facebook are edited for clarity and grammar:

What a great baseball player, one of the greatest competitors in any sport, anywhere. It's a shame that he gambled on the sport, but his lifetime ban is outrageous and should be rescinded. Put Pete Rose in the Hall of Fame where he belongs.

— Bill McLaughlin

A permanent ban means permanent. I would tell him to get in line behind Joe Jackson, a player accused of agreeing to lose the World Series in 1919. Jackson was found not guilty in a court of law, yet he was given the lifetime penalty, too.

Rose confessed to his crime, albeit after decades of lying, so he deserved exactly the punishment he was given.

— Foster Longstaff

Reinstating Rose would be like reinstating cyclist Lance Armstrong or other cheaters. If you want Rose in the Hall of Fame, then Barry Bonds and others tainted with steroids but passed over belong there, too.

— Bruce Mort