WASHINGTON, Aug. 12 (UPI) -- Major League Baseball released a statement Tuesday denying that Pete Rose would be reinstated in 2004.
The league was reacting to a report by Baseball Prospectus, through sources, that said Rose will be allowed to return next year with no admission of wrongdoing of his alleged betting on the sport.
The sources told the Prospectus that Rose signed an agreement after a series of preseason meetings with former teammate and Hall of Famer Mike Schmidt, and at different times, Commissioner Bud Selig and CEO Bob Dupuy.
However, in a quick reaction in a statement from the commissioner's office, Dupuy called it "unsubstantiated and totally unfounded." The league does admit that Rose and Selig have met regarding his pending application for reinstatement, which originally was filed in 1997, but Selig has not made a decision.
The Prospectus acknowledged the denial of MLB, but said it stands by the story.
"When a decision is made, it will be reported through the appropriate channels," Dupuy said. "Any unnamed source to the contrary or any report suggesting otherwise is both unfortunate and journalistically irresponsible."
Rose, baseball's all-time hits leader, has been banned since 1989, when he reached an agreement with then-commissioner Bart Giamatti.
