Pete Rose hasn’t lived in Cincinnati for more than a quarter century, but is it really a surprise that the local native, baseball’s all-time hit king, topped CityBeat’s annual Best of Cincinnati poll in the category of Best Cincinnatian?
It’s pretty clear that Rose won’t be entering the Hall of Fame anytime soon, but Major League Baseball has loosened its reins in recent years, giving him the OK to take part in more MLB-related activities. One such endeavor is his analyst duties with Fox Sports, where he swaps knowledge with Alex Rodriguez and Frank Thomas; should it also come as any surprise that Pete is the most amusing guy on broadcast? Sure, his old-school baseball beliefs sometimes come off as out of step, but it’s clear his enthusiasm and interest in the game is as strong as ever.
CityBeat recently touched base with Rose by phone to get his thoughts on everything from the current state of the Reds to his favorite stops when he’s back in his hometown.
CityBeat: Were you surprised you won Best Cincinnatian given that you haven’t lived here in so long?
Pete Rose: I wasn’t surprised, because you have to understand, and I think you do — I don’t know if baseball really understands this — but my name will always be synonymous with the Cincinnati Reds, because I played there so long and we did so well. I was born three miles from Crosley Field and the (new) ballpark is right down there on Pete Rose Way. My high school is there. Everywhere I go I wear a white Cincinnati Reds hat on all the programs I’m on. People associate me with Cincinnati more so than any other place in the country, and I’m always going around talking about Cincinnati. Baseball started there in 1869, the first night game in 1935, and I can remember when Opening Day was the biggest tradition in sports because we were the only game on that day. The rest of them played on Tuesday. We have a lot of tradition in Cincinnati, and I spread that tradition around the country — around the world, actually.
CB: How often do you get back to Cincinnati these days?
Pete: I’m usually there about once a month. I always have events around there. If I have an event within driving distance of Cincinnati, I always come in to watch the Reds if they’re in town. I always stay at the Covington Holiday Inn. That’s my home away from home.
CB: Are there certain places you like to go to when you’re in town?
Pete: That’s an easy one. If I’m there two days or three days, I’ll go to the Montgomery Inn for lunch and I’ll go to the Boathouse for dinner so I can see my buddies Dean and Tom Gregory. I do that every time I go to Cincinnati. Of course, I was raised on Skyline — over by the Holiday Inn you have a Skyline and a Gold Star. I usually get Gold Star because I did their commercials when they first started way, way back. And if you’re going to get ice cream, you got to get Graeter’s. There are certain things we were raised on. Those are primarily the two restaurants that I go to when I’m there.
CB: The Reds are obviously in a rebuilding phase right now. Do you feel they are on the right track?
Pete: I can’t assess that right now, but I think you’ll agree with me, one thing we Cincinnati Reds fans don’t want to hear about is rebuilding. The Phillies are rebuilding, too. In my eyes there are about 20 teams in baseball rebuilding, because there’s at least 18 teams that have no chance of winning this year, so if you have no chance of winning, you’re rebuilding.
I know the guy who owns the Reds, Mr. (Bob) Castellini. He’s got a long pocketbook. He’s put a lot of money into team without results, so it’s not the owner’s fault by any stretch of the imagination. If you told Mr. Castellini, “You go do this, you go do that, and we’ll win,” he would go do that and do this. So it’s up to the people who are putting this team together to get off their ass and make things happen. It’s all about knowing personnel and knowing what the team needs.
CB: What do you think of the rise of sabermetrics and its influence in baseball today?
Pete: I don’t care about that stuff. The number one thing you should teach young players that are in the Reds organization — I don’t know if they do it or not — is how to win. You know what we did every year when I was in the Reds organization? We won. We won the Florida State League Championship. We won the Sally League Championship. When we got to Cincinnati, we expected to win.
All they talk about is teaching development in the minor leagues; they don’t worry about winning. You got to teach these kids to win. There’s a difference between being a winner and being a loser. There’s a difference between being positive and being negative. I want winning, positive people. I want guys with big hearts. I want guys who have enthusiasm. I want guys who have work ethic. I don’t give a shit if you can throw a ball 102 miles an hour. I don’t care if you can hit the ball 600 feet. The fence is 375. If they gave you two runs for a 600-foot home run, then I’d be for a 600-foot home run, but they only give you one run. Those (sabermatrician) guys are smarter than me, but you can’t put all this computer stuff ahead of good old hard work, sweat and vinegar. You can’t do it.
CB: Is the analyst gig with Fox something you see yourself doing into the future?
Pete: I enjoy it. I enjoy working with A-Rod and Frank (Thomas). It’s easy to do whip-arounds because you’re right here in L.A. at the Fox studios. It’s a little tougher when you have to travel to the playoffs, but everything’s first class. Listen: I enjoy it, it’s a lot of fun, but when you ask about my broadcasting future, and though I don’t look it and don’t act it, don’t forget that I’m 75. You have to put that into the equation. As long as I can remain alert and get around and go through the airports and stuff like that, I’ll continue to do it. I feel good. ©
This article appears in Mar 29 – Apr 5, 2017.