On August 23, 1989, Major League Baseball Commissioner Bart Giamatti handed down one of the most publicized and scrutinized lifetime bans in baseball history. That was the day Commissioner Giamatti cemented the agreement and resolution that banned Peter Edward Rose – better known as “Pete Rose” – from Major League Baseball. The matter was stemming from an exhaustive and comprehensive investigation that was instituted by Giamatti on March 6, 1989, concerning “allegations that Peter Edward Rose, the field manager of the Cincinnati Reds Baseball Club, engaged in conduct not in the best interests of baseball in violation of major League Rule 21, including but not limited to betting on Major League Baseball games in connection with which he had a duty to perform.” Following six months of investigation and shared information and meetings between both parties, the Commissioner handed down the ruling that “Peter Edward Rose is hereby declared permanently ineligible in accordance with Major League Rule 21 and placed on the Ineligible List.”
This lot features the five-page, type-written “Agreement and Resolution” that was signed by the following parties abiding by this ruling on Aug. 23, 1989: Peter Edward Rose; A. Bartlett Giamatti, Commissioner of Baseball; Reuven J. Katz, Esq., Rose’s counsel; and Fay Vincent Jr., MLB Deputy Commissioner. Rule 21 states, in part: “BETTING ON BALL GAMES. Any player, umpire, or club official or employee, who shall bet any sum whatsoever upon any baseball game in connection with which the bettor has no duty to perform shall be declared ineligible for one year. Any player, umpire, or club or league official or employee, who shall bet any sum whatsoever upon any baseball game in connection with which the bettor has a duty to perform shall be declared permanently ineligible.”
Incredibly, less than 10 days following this historic ruling, on Sept. 1, 1989, Giamatti suffered a fatal heart attack while vacationing at his home on Martha’s Vineyard. He was just 51 years old. His tenure as MLB Commissioner lasted just 154 days and he became just the second baseball commissioner to die in office, the first being Kenesaw Mountain Landis. Following Giamatti’s death, MLB’s team owners soon selected Fay Vincent, Giamatti's close friend and baseball's first-ever deputy commissioner, as the new baseball commissioner. While Giamatti’s time as Baseball Commissioner was short-lived, his impact as MLB’s top gun is still being felt several decades later.
This lot also includes a signed, one-page type-written page from Rose that states: “On August 23, 1989 I signed an agreement with Major League Baseball. The contract was sent from their offices and it was returned to me countersigned by Bart Giamatti and Fay Vincent. Also, attached was the fully executed agreement I received back from Major League Baseball.”
Full LOA's from both PSA/DNA and JSA.