1989 Pete Rose FINAL Major League Baseball Contract and Addendum

Auction: 2023 Fall Classic

Home
Past Auctions
2023 Fall Classic
Pete Rose & Cincinnati Reds

Consign Your Best Items with Lelands. We Also Pay Cash on the Spot! Learn More Here.

1989 Pete Rose FINAL Major League Baseball Contract and Addendum

Presented is an opportunity to possess the FINAL baseball contract, with addendum, of Pete Rose, the all-time Major League leader in hits, with 4,256. The displayed Rose contract, a Uniform (National League) Manager's Contract with the Cincinnati Reds, is for Rose to manage the Reds during the 1989 and 1990 seasons. It is actually a $1 million dollar contract in that the document stipulates that Rose would receive five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000.00) for each of the two seasons. The uniform contract, comprising four-pages, with the fourth page blank, is dated November 15, 1988, and it has been signed by Pete Rose and then-Commissioner of Baseball, A. Bartlett Giamatti, with Giamatti's signature dated as Nov. 18, 1988. Both Rose and Giamatti have signed the contract in blue ballpoint pen, and the fact that Giamatti was the National League's President at the time of the signing is incredible, because in the next year, 1990, Giamatti, as the Baseball Commissioner, banned Rose for life, and Rose did not manage in 1990 or ever again work in organized baseball. Rose signed as "Pete Rose" and Giamatti signed as "A. Bartlett Giamatti." Included with the uniform manager's contract is a four-page addendum. This addendum is signed by Rose as "Peter Edward Rose," with Rose signing in blue ink. On August 23, 1989, Rose, who was being investigated by the Baseball Commissioner's Office for betting on baseball, including gambling on the Reds to win, signed a settlement agreement with Major League Baseball in which he acknowledged betting on baseball, including betting on the Cincinnati Reds to win. Rose's settlement included his acceptance of a lifetime ban from baseball and from his ever being inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Sadly, Bart Giamatti passed away from a heart attack soon after the lifetime banning of Rose. The contract and its addendum are fully executed. In addition to Rose and Giamatti, the contract is signed by then-Reds' President Murray Cook. The uniform contract has a slight tear at the bottom of the centerfold, and the contract is in otherwise EX condition, with signatures that are 8/10. The addendum is signed by Rose, Reds' President Murray Cook, and Rose's attorney, Reuven Katz. As part of the addendum, the agreement specifies that Rose will not be paid according to the contract if he is suspended by the club, the National League President, or the Commissioner of Baseball. By betting on baseball, and more specifically on his own team to win, Rose violated Major League Baseball Rule 21 (d), which bans a player for one year for betting on baseball and for life if betting on his own team. Even though Rose signed the settlement agreement, he publicly denied betting on his own Cincinnati Reds to win; yet, in a book co-authored by Rose, My Prison Without Walls (2004), Rose finally admitted that he had bet on his own team when he was managing the Reds. The contract and addendum both measure 8.5x11". The addendum pages have darkened over time, but otherwise the addendum is in EXCELLENT condition. Rose currently makes his living at the periphery of Major League Baseball, attending sports memorabilia events and other functions, where, as the MLB's all-time hit king, his presence and signature are in high demand. The offered signed contract and addendum are fascinating, because regardless of whether Pete Rose ever is inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame, his status as the game's hit king remains intact.