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Pete Rose apparently finally admits to betting on baseball in his new book. Somehow, in the eyes of a number of people, this makes it all OK. Even though Rose has been bashing John Dowd, whose evidence was enough to convince former Commissioner Bart Giamatti and a lot of the rest of us, for the past 15 years while refusing to admit his guilt. And the part I really don't understand, some people seem ready to put him right in the Hall of Fame.

Let me be very clear about this: Rose had some very, very significant achievements as a player. Mementos from his career definitely belong in the museum attached to the Hall of Fame (and, in fact, are there). But when they put a plaque in the hall, they're inducting the person. And while there are some real SOBs already in the Hall (Cap Anson and Ty Cobb come to mind), that doesn't excuse putting another one in. In my opinion, Anson shouldn't be there because of his role in keeping baseball segregated. The realiity is that during the time Anson came up for a vote, that was never going to be the kind of issue it is today. Rose broke a 100-year-old rule of baseball that's posted in every clubhouse. And then spent 15 years slandering the man who proved he did it. This is not a person who belongs on a plaque in the Hall of Fame.

To their credit, players seem to have a bit more sense than a lot of the writers about this. I heard on ESPN yesterday that a number of current HoF players have said that if Rose is inducted, they will never go back to Cooperstown. I'll go, but I'll probably get thrown out for spitting on his plaque.

On Edit: Thanks to Tom for pointing out that I confused Hal Chase (who isn't in the Hall) with Cap Anson (who is).