CLEARWATER, FL – MARCH 1986: Pete Rose #14 of the Philadelphia Phillies slides head-first into third base in March 1986 in Clearwater, Florida. (Photo by Ronald C. Modra/Sports Imagery/Getty Images)

Major League Baseball legend Pete Rose’s reputation was just starting to emerge from the pit he placed it in following the gambling scandal that ended his coaching career and turned him into a pariah. He’s been able to find his way back to television with a spot on Fox’s playoff broadcast team and his former teams have been lining up to honor him as one of the game’s best all-time hitters.

The Philadelphia Phillies had big plans to induct Rose into their Wall of Fame on August 12 but those plans have now been scrapped with the public release of a sworn statement that Rose had a sexual relationship with an underage girl in the 1970s. The now-adult woman made the statement Monday in federal court.

The Phillies made a joint announcement with Rose that he would not participate in their Phillies Alumni Weekend festivities due to “other matters.” That includes the cancellation of Pete Rose bobbleheads that were scheduled to be distributed on Friday, August 11. Fans who purchased tickets with the hope of seeing Rose honored can also exchange their tickets for any other Phillies game this season or receive a refund.

The statement was made as part of an ongoing lawsuit that Rose pursued against John Dowd, who documented Rose’s gambling schemes back in 1989. Dowd has said in a radio interview that along with gambling, an associate of Rose’s said that he was involved with underage girls during spring training.

The statement, made by a woman identified as “Jane Doe,” states that she was “14 or 15 years old” when she received a phone call from Rose in 1973. “Sometime after that, Pete Rose and I began meeting at a house in Cincinnati. … It was at that house where, before my sixteenth birthday, Pete Rose began a sexual relationship with me. This sexual relationship lasted for several years. Pete Rose also met me in locations outside of Ohio where we had sex.”

Rose was also married at the time.

While canceling Rose’s appearance and honoring is a smart move by the Phillies, it does re-raise the question of why the franchise thought it was a good idea to align itself with him again in the first place.

About Sean Keeley

Along with writing for Awful Announcing and The Comeback, Sean is the Editorial Strategy Director for Comeback Media. Previously, he created the Syracuse blog Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician and wrote 'How To Grow An Orange: The Right Way to Brainwash Your Child Into Rooting for Syracuse.' He has also written non-Syracuse-related things for SB Nation, Curbed, and other outlets. He currently lives in Seattle where he is complaining about bagels. Send tips/comments/complaints to sean@thecomeback.com.

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