As the city gears up for its annual salute to P.T. Barnum, the mayor, showman and master publicist, the Bridgeport Bluefish took a page from Mr. Barnum’s attraction playbook. Pete Rose, the all-time Major League hits leader, was the special guest skipper for the Bluefish Monday night attracting national media outlets to the ballpark at Harbor Yard and fans who’d not otherwise attend a Monday night game. Fish won 2-0 before 4,573 fans, a rosy turnout tripling a normal crowd for a Monday night.
Rose last managed a professional game about 25 years ago with the Cincinnati Reds. His ban from baseball for betting on games has also precluded his entry into the Baseball Hall of Fame. After denying it for years, Rose admitted he bet on baseball as manager of the Reds in a book released about 10 years ago. Irrespective of his ban from baseball, Rose is still a fan favorite at baseball memorabilia events. Rose’s son played for the independent league Bluefish about a decade ago.
“I’m doing this because I love baseball,” said Rose in a news release issued by the Bluefish. “I love young players because they bring you one thing you need in sports–enthusiasm. These young men are here working their butts off. They don’t have egos–they are hungry. They run hard and they play hard, all the time.”
Mayor Bill Finch, a huge baseball fan, threw out the first pitch to the game:
“As a baseball fan, I had the fortunate experience of spending my childhood through part of my adult life watching Pete Rose play baseball. He was an incredible player, a fantastic coach, and an asset to the game he loves. And, his appearance today serves as an asset to Bridgeport. I’m thrilled to have Pete Rose visiting our city today, managing our city’s largest baseball team, and bringing national and regional attention to a city that is creating jobs, developing its economy, and investing in its future.”
More from the Hartford Courant here
Finch said, “to a city that is creating jobs, developing its economy, and investing in its future.” It’s like Finch lives in Stamford or something. The only jobs he is “creating” are for his friends, and how are we “developing our economy?” Finch spent $400,000 on a friend’s driveway, and thousands more defending lawsuits, and how are we “investing in our future?” Letting the UI build a solar field field on park land with absolutely no benefit to our city? Unbelievable how he says this with a straight face.
Remember this? Finch forgot to tell the little old ladies that Phil Kuchma’s project’s were bailed-out too. Without Mary-Jane Foster’s commitment to Bridgeport, Finch would have been throwing his first pitch at a Seaside Park little league game.
http://blog.ctnews.com/connecticutpostings/2011/08/18/mayor-finch-makes-first-attack-on-mary-jane-fosters-business-record/
Give me a team full of Pete Rose and I’ll beat you 90% of the time on hustle, determination and ability of the likes of Pete Rose. Here’s a guy who should be in the Hall of Fame just like Shoeless Joe Jackson should be in the Hall of Fame. Some of the members of the Hall of Fame couldn’t shine Pete Rose’s shoes on the baseball field.
I happen to believe Pete Rose is a jerk and doesn’t belong in the Hall of Fame despite his extraordinary records. The guy bet on baseball games–his behavior undermined the integrity of baseball. That said, there are so many who disagree with me. I’m happy they got their day. Also happy for the Bluefish. I hope they made lots of money and new fans.
It is funny how Pete’s punishment was significantly more harsh, realistically and in the eyes of the people, for cheating at baseball than Ernie Newton or Joe Ganim for cheating the people of BPT. I guess you don’t expect people to cheat at baseball.