Pete Rose is one of the greatest baseball players ever and a member of the MLB Top 50 All-Time Team. He made his MLB debut on April 8, 1963 with the Cincinnati Reds and went on to win Rookie of the Year. He played an impressive 24 seasons and amassed 4,256 hits, which is a record that may never be broken. In 1989, Pete Rose was penalized with permanent ineligibility from baseball because of accusations that he gambled on baseball games while he played and managed the Cincinnait Reds. After years of denying these allegations, in 2004, he finally admitted to betting on the Reds. Based on his performance on the field, he is worthy of being in the Hall of Fame and hopefully that day will come.
Below is a look at some of Pete Rose’s career accomplishments and highlights.
- 17x All-Star
- 3x Batting Title
- 3x World Series Champion
- 2x Gold Glove
- 1x World Series MVP
- 1x MVP
- Rookie of the Year
Pete Rose’s rookie card is in the 1963 Topps set along with Hall of Famer Willie Stargell. I purchased a PSA 3 on eBay and cracked it open for a paid signing. The first time that I sent the card in, it came back signed without the inscription that I paid for. I re-sent the card in and the inscription was added, unfortunately not in the location that I reqeusted. Overall it looks good and it is still rare to have an inscription on his rookie card but it would have looked much better if the inscription was placed above his photo.
Currently there are only 123 autographed 1963 Topps Pete Rose rookie cards in the PSA registry.
Total Investment: $878.50
Estimated Value: $4,000
Return on Investment: 355%