Did anyone here see that interview that Jim Gray of NBC Sports conducted with Pete Rose after the “Team of the Century” presentation before the World Series last night?
Well, NBC has been flooded with calls and e-mails from people totally pissed off at the treatment Rose received from Gray.
My oinion is that they’re right. Oh, of course Rose is not above reproach. And he certainly handled himself without the greatest skill in the iinterview.
But Gray, right after an emootional, special baseball moment, to totally go off on him like that and not give in was just wrong.
There’s a time and a place to take Pete to task for being stubborn and maybe a liar, but it wa NOT immediately after his triumphant return to the diamond after 10 years, and certainly NOT after a great tribute to some great players for what they did ON the field.
I hope Jim Gray gets his balls handed to him, and I’m very surprised that Rose, as feisty as is he, didn’t slug him on national TV/
I totally agree. I don’t want to defend Rose, but Gray was way out of line, and went far overboard in his attack. When Gray suggested that Rose might consider changing tactics, I was hoping Rose would say something like, “Yeah, a few seconds ago I considered slugging an obnoxious reporter, but then I decided not to bother. You’re not worth it.”
Seriously, where do poeople find the phone numbers to call? Whenever I call NYC Directory Information for NBC, I always get the WNBC station office. How did these hundreds of people get the network phone number?
Somehow, Brian, I knew you were going to post this. I’m glad you did.
That had to be one of the worst “interviews” I have ever seen. Gray did not even bother to hide the fact that this was a planned hatchet attack. Rose handled the situtation as well as anyone could, but a surprise frontal attack is tough to defend against. There should be a public censure of Jim Gray and anyone else associated with the attack.
That said, what did Rose do to his hair? Geez, man, pay a real barber and quit trying the Just for Men experimental colors.
The overwhelming majority of people have more than the average (mean) number of legs. – E. Grebenik
Jim Gray is one of those Mike Wallace wannabe’s who add nothing to any broadcast I’ve ever seen.
He did something like this to Phil Jackson after the bulls won championship #5. His 1st question was whether he would return for another season. Phil replied he didn’t want to discuss it, but Gray persisted with follow up questions on the same topic that were not answered by Jackson.
I never fail to be annoyed by this pud when I see him on TV
I find it incredibly ironic that Major League Baseball is so mortally concerned with it’s image that it will cast it’s greatest hitter into the Void for allegations of gambling, yet it will suffer puerile cretins like Jim Gray to single-handedly ruin the magic of the All-Century Team.
I also find it interesting that Gray, for all his "hard-hitting’ style, would decide to quickly duck out of Turner Field and ignore requests for statements from other media. It would seem that he prefers to side-step the controversy he creates, like the professional shit-disturber that he is.
Lastly, I find it extremely disconcerting that Major League Baseball is so quick to revise it’s moral code according to the times. When many of the (deceased) players on the All-Century Team were active, it was de jure to segregate the many black baseball players who possessed talents equal to their own. I’m sure that Ty Cobb is spinning in his grave knowing he was elected to a team that has as many blacks as whites. Yet MLB finds it very easy to say, “We know better now, and it’s all forgiven and forgotten.”
The festivities were great, the game was better (go Yanks!), but the hypocrisy was appalling.
I admit I didn’t see the interview. But, reading the transcript, it didn’t seem like that big of a deal, He asked him questions I have wanted to see Pete Rose answer for 10 years, and Pete seemed to get defensive right away.
I don’t know, I really don’t understand why he has stuck with the same stance, the evidence seems pretty overwhelming, I think if he just apoligized, said he had a problem, he could have been back in 8 or 9 years ago. But, he continues to act defiantly and say that there is no evidence.
Oh well.
On the other hand, I didn’t see Grey ask the questions. He might have been too in your face for that event. I can see that point, for sure, it probably isn’t the right time. But, the text of the questions just doesn’t seem too confrontational, they are questions Rose should have answered long ago.
Oh well.
It was really neat to hear Rose being cheered and introduced by Vin Scully. (I listened on the radio) Brought back memories of the Phillies winning the series in 1980.
zoony: Ted Williams was (is) the greatest hitter in Major League history.
On to the real topic: Jim Gray just got caught trying to squeeze a watershed moment out of thin air. He tried, it didn’t work. The right thing to do is to say “oh fiddlesticks” and move on to another question. He didn’t. He pressed Rose, and Rose pressed back.
Frankly, I respect Rose for upholding his beliefs and morals, despite the cost, but I am even more impressed with Major League Baseball. In light of recent occurances involving certain Heisman candidates, NBA players, and other athletes, I find it refreshing that the MLB maintains its stance on things like gambling. I think that the standard of behavior in the Major Leagues is excellent in comparison to other sports (Larry Jones’ affairs and John Rocker’s antics notwithstanding)
The IQ of a group is equal to the IQ of the dumbest member divided by the number of people in the group.
You must not have seen it. It was a lot more than simply “he tried”. He attacked for a good five minutes, repeating the same thing over and over. It was an inquisition. A couple of questions would be one thing. but this was an all-out mugging.
<<< I find it refreshing that the MLB maintains its stance on things like gambling. >>>
Wouldn’t it be nice if they’d “maintain their stance” on real crimes as well?
At one point in the interview, Jim Gray mentioned all the accumulated evidence that Pete Rose had gambled on Major-League Baseball. Rose countered with, “What evidence? Show me the evidence.”
Two points: One is that Jim Gray has succeeded in taking all the attention away from the players. Reminds me of a spoiled child. Second is that he has succeeded in making Pete look sympathetic, which may help his cause. No one likes a bully.
I’ve wondered about this … what statistic is used to determine who is the “greatest” hitter? If it’s career batting average, then Ty Cobb wins. If it’s the total number of career hits, then somebody else wins. If it’s the highest batting average for any single season, then Ted Williams loses out to many of the “greats” that appeared earlier on in the game, before players got so good generally that it became impossible to soar all the way to a .400 average.
Very accommodating of you to overlook behavior that you find less offensive. MLB has quite a history of turning a blind eye to the off-field behavior of its players, especially when said behavior violates state and federal law - Darryl Strawberry (quite possibly the dumbest player in recent memory: I’ve lost count of how many times he’s been in and out of rehab), Jose Canseco and his love affair with handguns and history of spousal abuse, Jose Mesa’s difficulties with ‘No Means No’, etc.
While MLB is not alone in badly-behaving membership, I would hardly commend it for it’s excellent attitude toward such happenstance. The only time they take offense is when they perceive their image to be threatened: general populace and fans be damned, there’s laws to protect you folks from our overpaid primadonnas. After all, boys will be boys…
Z
The world is made for those not cursed with self-awareness.
Zoomy: re: Jose Mesa
FYI, the Ohio Supreme Court has recently ruled that Mesa must stand trial for possession of a handgun, a charge that had been thrown out by the trial court at a suppression hearing. See State v. Mesa, 87 Ohio St. 3d 105 (1999)
