The 1989 baseball season ended with disaster. At 5:04 p.m. on October 17 in San Francisco’s Candlestick Park — just a half-hour before game three of the 1989 World Series — fans and players felt a vibration. For a few seconds, they didn’t know what to make of the tremors, but then the reality…
On November 3, 1989, Lou Piniella is named to replace Pete Rose as manager of the Cincinnati Reds. Rose was banned from baseball for his gambling activities while managing the team. In his first season in Cincinnati, Piniella will guide the Reds to the World Series title. CINCINNATI – Piniella REDS HAVE TALENT…
On September 1, 1989, Commissioner Bart Giamatti dies from a heart attack at the age of 51. Giamatti’s death occurs only eight days after he made headlines by banning Cincinnati Reds manager Pete Rose from baseball for gambling. Giamatti had been elected commissioner in 1988.
“In the absence of a hearing and therefore in the absence of any evidence to the contrary, I am confronted by the factual record of the Dowd report, and on the basis of that, yes, I have concluded that he bet on baseball.” – A. BARTLETT GIAMATTI, commissioner commenting on Pete Rose’s lifetime banishment. “Regardless of what the commissioner said today, I did not bet on baseball.” – PETE ROSE, defending himself at Riverfront Stadium news conference. Commissioner A. Bartlett Giamatti, stating he believed that Pete Rose had bet on games, including those of the team he managed, announces an agreement that bans Mr. Rose permanently from baseball. The five-page agreement, signed by the commissioner and the Reds manager, does not indicate the suspension is specifically for betting on baseball games and does not include language that Rose wagered bets on games.
1989 – Sports Illustrated publishes a story about Cincinnati Reds manager Pete Rose’s gambling activities. Rose will eventually agree to a lifetime ban from Major League Baseball as part of an agreement with Commissioner A. Bartlett Giamatti.
1989 – Commissioner Peter Ueberroth announces that he has begun an investigation into the behavior of Cincinnati Reds manager Pete Rose. Ueberroth doesn’t identify the allegations against Rose, but the Reds’ skipper will eventually be banished for his alleged involvement with gambling.
Reds manager Pete Rose meets with Commissioner Peter Ueberroth and Commissioner-elect Bart Giamatti to explain the allegations concerning his gambling habits. Major League Baseball will launch a full investigation into the matter next month, which will lead to “Charlie Hustle’s” permanent ban from the game in August.
Reds’ manager Pete Rose will be suspended for thirty days and fined $10,000 for pushing David Pallone, after the umpire makes a delayed call that allows the eventual winning run to score in the team’s 6-5 loss to the Mets at Riverfront Stadium. The Cincinnati skipper shoves the first base ump twice after claiming he was poked in the face, a charge the arbitrator denies, and one never substantiated by major league baseball.
1988 – Glenn Davis drives in five, including three on his fifth home run of the young season, to slam the Reds, 9-3. It makes for an unhappy 47th birthday for Cincinnati skipper Pete Rose.
Pete Rose makes his final major league appearance, striking out as a pinch hitter against Goose Gossage. The Reds lose, 9 – 5, to the visiting Padres. A bright spot is Barry Larkin hitting his first major league home run, off LaMarr Hoyt.