With Pete Rose no longer ineligible for the Baseball Hall of Fame after MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred lifted the more than 35-year ban on Rose for gambling on his games, there are some vocal figures advocating for Rose to become a Hall of Famer, including current Cincinnati Reds manager Terry Francona.

Francona, who will almost certainly join the Hall at some point, made his stance clear on Rose's HOF case.

“I know I oversimplify things. But what Pete did as a player, if he's not in, there is no Hall of Fame,” Francona said, via ESPN. “But I get it. There are some things that … I'm glad I don't have to make [those] decisions.”

Francona both played with and for Rose in his career. During the 1984 season, both Francona and Rose were a part of the Montreal Expos, with whom Rose spent just part of that season before being traded to Cincinnati. Following the trade, Rose became the Reds' player-manager. Rose's playing career came to an end following the 1986 season, and Francona reunited with Rose in Cincinnati for the 1987 season.

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Rose's managerial career, as well as involvement in MLB, ended on August 24, 1989, when he was officially placed on baseball's ineligible list for gambling on MLB games, including Reds games when he was both a player and manager. Less than two years later, the Baseball Hall of Fame made an official ruling that it could not induct any player on the ineligible list, effectively barring Rose from ever being inducted.

However, since Rose's death last September, Manfred considered and ultimately made the extraordinary decision to lift the ban on Rose, as well as 16 others who were on the ineligible list and have since died.

While Manfred's decision allows Rose to be officially considered for a spot in the prestigious Hall of Fame, it is not a certainty that Rose will ultimately be inducted. The Classic Baseball Era Committee will decide Rose's fate when it next meets and votes in December 2027.

The committee is comprised of 16 people, five of whom must vote for Rose to be inducted, or the all-time MLB hits leader will be left off of the ballot in the subsequent three-year cycle. To be elected into the Hall of Fame, Rose will need 75% of the committee's votes.