Pete Rose Hit With Tax Lien

Stop me if you've heard this one before.  Pete Rose is in tax trouble.

According to the Thirty Mile Zone…the hit king was, um, hit with a tax lien.  This time, it's the State of California and they're looking for $15,520.86 in unpaid taxes from 2010 and 2011.  And, apparently, he's already making plans to take care of it.  But this kind of thing is not new to the former Major Leaguer.  In the past 15 years, Rose has racked more than a million dollars in back taxes and, you guessed it, he paid it all off.

Now…I only bring that up so I can segue into this.

On July 29, The Hall of Very Good™ added two new members…Dale Murphy and Steve Blass.  But, we almost added a third.

You guessed it.  Peter Edward Rose.

Sure, the guy has had his fair share of controversy, but while Major League Baseball seemingly refuses to acknowledge his existence, we simply couldn't look the other way.  Like many, we recognize that he was a maestro and the plate and in a class of his own.

So…why wasn't Rose added to the proverbial hallowed halls of The Hall?  To be truthful, we couldn't come to a unanimous decision to induct him.  And the reasons were varied.

Coincidentally, there was also this.

Shawn,

I was forwarded your email regarding the Hall of Very Good. 

We would not be able to participate with this project. Also, I would not recommend that you do anything to upstage the National Hall of Fame ceremony especially in regard to a connection to Pete.

Good luck with the overall project. Bringing attention to all of those who contributed to the great sport of baseball is always a worthy endeavor.

Sincerely,

Now, I'm not going to divulge who wrote that email, but it was someone within the Cincinnati Reds organization.  No…seriously.  I got the thing well after we made the decision to pass on Rose and go with Murphy and Blass, but the phrasing was interesting. 

Upstage?  Really?!?  Sure, dude wished us luck, but, still.  Wow.

On September 7, Rose is planning on heading to The Queen City to celebrate the unveiling of the Joe Morgan statue at Great American Ballpark.  I guess we'll see if the team allows him to "upstage" his former teammate.