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Baseball great Pete Rose, in what is thought to be his last interview before he died at the age of 83 on Sept. 30, 2024, said he believed “that I’ll make the Hall of Fame after I die.”

In a sit-down video interview with Dayton, Ohio, sportscaster John Condit on Sept. 20 for an undisclosed documentary, Rose questioned the point of getting into Cooperstown posthumously.

“I’ve come to the conclusion — I hope I’m wrong — that I’ll make the Hall of Fame after I die,” Rose said in the interview, which took place 10 days before his death. “Which I totally disagree with, because the Hall of Fame is for two reasons: your fans and your family. That’s what the Hall of Fame is for. Your fans and your family. And it’s for your family if you’re here. It’s for your fans if you’re here. Not if you’re 10 feet under. You understand what I’m saying?

“What good is it going to do me or my fans if they put me in the Hall of Fame couple years after I pass away? What’s the point? What’s the point? Because they’ll make money over it?”

Rose was placed on baseball’s permanently ineligible list by then-commissioner A. Bartlett Giamatti in 1989 for gambling on baseball. Commissioner Rob Manfred in 2015 rejected Rose’s bid for reinstatement, but sources told ESPN on Saturday that Manfred is reviewing a petition to posthumously remove MLB’s career leader in hits from the ineligible list after meeting with Fawn Rose, the eldest daughter of Pete Rose, and Los Angeles lawyer Jeffrey Lenkov, who represented Rose prior to his death.

In 2020, ESPN reported that for all practical purposes, Manfred viewed baseball’s banned list as punishing players during their lifetime but ending upon their death. A senior MLB source told ESPN then that after a banned player dies, MLB informally sees that the banning ends. In the past, Hall of Fame representatives have said that after a player dies — and he is still on the banned list — he still won’t be eligible for consideration for the Hall of Fame.

Rose, who spent most of his 24-year career with the Cincinnati Reds, won the World Series three times and remains Major League Baseball’s career leader in hits, games played, at-bats, singles and outs. His name has never appeared on a Hall of Fame ballot.

“I’ve come to the conclusion — I hope I’m wrong — that I’ll make the Hall of Fame after I die. Which I totally disagree with, because the Hall of Fame is for two reasons: your fans and your family. … What good is it going to do me or my fans if they put me in the Hall of Fame couple years after I pass away? What’s the point? What’s the point? Because they’ll make money over it?”

Pete Rose, in what is believed to be his last interview on Sept. 20 — 10 days before he died.

In 2004, Rose admitted in a book that he gambled while he was manager of the Reds, but he insisted he only bet on his team to win. Years later, ESPN reported that Rose also placed bets as a player, but Rose wouldn’t admit it.

“The Hall of Fame is for what you did on the field, not what you did off the field,” Rose said in the interview with Condit. “You know, back in the ’20s and ’30s, there were some characters playing baseball. Ty Cobb was a character, OK. … He got away with a lot of stuff. Babe Ruth drank a lot. But people didn’t care as long as you played the game.”

President Donald Trump last week said he would pardon Rose, though he did not say what the pardon would cover; Rose served five months in prison after pleading guilty to tax evasion charges in 1990.

Rose often said no player had won more major league games than him, and he echoed that in his interview with Condit.

“I’m not bitter about everything. I’m the one that f—ed up. Why am I going to be bitter?” Rose said. “When you make a mistake, don’t be bitter to other people. I wish I hadn’t made the mistake, but I did. It’s history. Get over it. I didn’t hurt you as a fan. … I didn’t hurt any of my fans by betting on the game of baseball — and by the way, betting on the game of baseball to win. To win, OK?

“I wanted to win every game. … I happened to win more than anybody else, but that’s OK. Not bad.”

ESPN’s Don Van Natta Jr. contributed to this report.

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U.S. shut out by Switzerland at hockey worlds

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U.S. shut out by Switzerland at hockey worlds

HERNING, Denmark — Switzerland, last year’s runner-up, shut out the United States 3-0 and handed the Americans their first loss at the ice hockey world championship Monday.

Damien Riat, Jonas Siegenthaler and Dean Kukan scored in the Group B game in Herning. Netminder Leonardo Genoni stopped 23 shots for the shutout.

“Give credit to Switzerland,” U.S. coach Ryan Warsofsky said. “But I know our group has a lot more in them. We’ll regroup and get ready to play Norway.”

Riat put Switzerland ahead with 7:14 remaining in the first period, redirecting the puck into the goal from the air. It was the first goal the U.S. conceded at the tournament.

The second followed 3:13 later by Siegenthaler from the blue line. Kukan’s came halfway through the final period from the top of the left circle.

“After the first goal we did a better job,” Swiss forward Kevin Fiala said. “We got into it more and more, and shut them out.”

Fiala recorded an assist in his first game at the worlds. He joined the Swiss late after his Los Angeles Kings were eliminated from the NHL playoffs in the first round.

U.S. goalie Joey Daccord made 24 saves.

The U.S., which beat Denmark 5-0 and Hungary 6-0 in its first two games, will next face Norway on Wednesday.

In other games, Martin Necas had two goals and David Pastrnak had a goal and two assists as the defending champion Czech Republic used a four-goal middle period to ease past Denmark 7-2.

Nick Olesen also had a goal and an assist for Denmark.

In Stockholm, Sweden topped archrival Finland 2-1 on goals from Leo Carlsson and Jonas Brodin for a third victory in regulation from three games.

Austria defeated Slovakia 3-2 in a penalty shootout.

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Leafs’ Domi fined $5K for hit to Panthers’ Barkov

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Leafs' Domi fined K for hit to Panthers' Barkov

Toronto Maple Leafs forward Max Domi was fined $5,000 — the maximum amount allowed by the league’s collective bargaining agreement — for boarding Florida Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov as time expired in Game 4 of their second-round Eastern Conference playoff series Sunday.

Toronto was trailing 2-0 when the final buzzer sounded, and Domi hit Barkov from behind, sending him headfirst into the boards. Domi was given a minor penalty for boarding at the time while several other scrums broke out before officials moved players off the ice.

Florida’s victory evened the best-of-seven series at 2-all. Game 5 is set for Wednesday in Toronto.

Toronto coach Craig Berube didn’t comment on the Domi hit directly Monday, but he did say he thought Dmitry Kulikov‘s hit on Mitch Marner “was way worse”

On that play, the Panthers defenseman caught Marner up high with an elbow, leaving the Leafs forward momentarily dazed. No penalty was called on Kulikov.

It wasn’t the first elbowing incident to draw attention in the series.

In Game 1, Panthers forward Sam Bennett sent an elbow to the head of Leafs netminder Anthony Stolarz shortly before Stolarz left the game. He was later hospitalized for further evaluation and hasn’t been able to resume skating since. There is currently no timeline for his return.

The physical intensity of the series might continue to rise now that it’s down to being a best-of-three. Based on how Game 4 played out, the Leafs are prepared to push back when they host Florida on Wednesday.

“We expected [the physicality], and I think we’re fine with it,” Berube said. “We’re handling it. We’re physical. I thought we were the more physical team [in Game 4].”

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Stars’ Heiskanen still on pace to return vs. Jets

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Stars' Heiskanen still on pace to return vs. Jets

DALLAS — Stars coach Pete DeBoer expects injured star defenseman Miro Heiskanen to play in their series against the Winnipeg Jets.

“I’m still sticking by what I projected: that we would see him in the second round,” DeBoer said Monday during an optional Dallas practice.

The Stars lead their series with the Jets 2-1, with Game 4 scheduled for Tuesday night.

Heiskanen remains day-to-day, with him not having played since Jan. 28, when his left knee was injured in a collision with Vegas Golden Knights forward Mark Stone. Heiskanen had knee surgery and has been working his way back to the lineup since Winnipeg’s opening-round series against the Colorado Avalanche. Heiskanen had 25 points (5 goals, 20 assists) in 50 games this season, averaging 25:10 in ice time.

Monday was a scheduled off day for Heiskanen. DeBoer said he’ll be “back at it tomorrow.” The coach said that any decision on Heiskanen’s status will be made together by the coach, the player and the team’s medical staff.

Last round, DeBoer said everything was “on the table” to ease Heiskanen back into the lineup, including playing seven defensemen. The coach said he’s not looking for the 25-year-old defenseman to log his usual minutes right away, having ranked fifth in the NHL in average ice time during the regular season.

“I don’t think there are specific restrictions, but we’re not going to put ‘im out on the ice for 30 minutes in his first game back in three months,” DeBoer said. “We’ll have to be smart about that.”

Dallas forward Jason Robertson has seen firsthand what it’s like to go from watching the playoffs to competing in them. He returned to the Stars’ lineup after being injured in an April 16 game, making his postseason debut in Game 1 at Winnipeg.

“You’re coming back from injury, so whatever you had is obviously going to bother you. So that’s the No. 1 thing. And then getting up to game speed in the playoffs is a different animal,” he said. “There’s no hiding out there. Every moment’s heightened, every missed assignment, any forecheck. Anytime you get beat up the ice, everything just gets heightened. So you just try to be super simple out there until you get your legs back and get in game shape. That could take a little bit.”

The Stars have weathered the loss of Heiskanen thanks to the depth of their defense corps. Thomas Harley has filled in on the power play, collecting four points in the postseason. Veteran Cody Ceci has handled an increase of over two minutes per game in ice time. Players such as Lian Bichsel and Alexander Petrovic have played effectively, DeBoer said.

“I think it’s been exceptional what our group’s done,” the coach said.

Winnipeg coach Scott Arniel acknowledged that Dallas, already leading in the series, will get an instant emotional boost when Heiskanen returns.

“An elite, elite player obviously,” he said. “We can’t worry about somebody that’s not here. If all of a sudden we show up and he’s out there in warmups, then yeah, we certainly have to recognize it.”

With the possibility there that Heiskanen could return as early as Game 4, Arniel would be fine if the Stars continued to take a cautious approach with their star defenseman.

“Hopefully, he takes a little bit more time to make sure he’s getting back on it,” the Jets coach said with a grin.

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