Selig offers no clues to whether he's considering reinstating Rose

By JANIE McCAULEY
AP Sports Writer

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) Bud Selig danced around questions about Pete Rose on Thursday, refusing to say whether he was considering lifting the permanent ban agreed to by the career hits leader 14 years ago.

The baseball commissioner, speaking at the Bay area's annual Fox Sports Net baseball luncheon, reiterated how difficult this case is for him considering his longtime friendship with the late A. Bartlett Giamatti, the commissioner who forced Rose to agree to the lifetime ban.

Selig's office has hired a former federal prosecutor to work on its evaluation of Rose's 1997 application for reinstatement. Rose agreed to the ban following an investigation of his gambling but maintains he never bet on baseball.

``One of the conditions is that Pete after one year had the opportunity to apply for reinstatement,'' Selig said. ``He applied for reinstatement 5{, almost six years ago now. It sat on my desk for a long time, but in the last year we've begun, because he has the right to apply for reinstatement, to take a look at that.

``Obviously, I'm in a very sensitive position, and that's all I can say now. But somehow people seem to think there's something new. No, this is a direct result from the agreement that Bart made with Pete Rose in August of 1989. We'll just have to let the process play out.''

Rose, who served a five-month federal prison sentence a decade ago following guilty pleas of two felony counts of failure to report income, met with Selig in November. Rose is ineligible for the Hall of Fame as long as he's barred from the sport.

On another topic, Selig expects a decision in the upcoming months on the site for the 2005 All-Star game.

The San Francisco Giants' 3-year-old stadium, Pacific Bell Park, is in line to host the sport's summer showcase event.

``San Francisco's a very viable candidate for an All-Star game fairly soon,'' Selig said. ``We just haven't made a final decision yet.''

The Chicago White Sox will host this year's All-Star game, and Houston is the 2004 site. While the site traditionally has rotated among leagues, Selig said he wouldn't be against back-to-back games in NL ballparks.

``You use the All-Star game to show off your new venues,'' he said. ``It's worked out so well.''

Selig also expressed concern for the AL West champion Oakland Athletics, who share the Coliseum with the NFL's Oakland Raiders.

``We're asking them to compete in a stadium they can't compete in,'' he said. ``They're not viable without a new stadium. They have great young talent, and you want them to keep that talent.''

A's owner Steve Schott isn't worried that the city will lose its team, but knows the franchise will continue working in difficult circumstances with a struggling economy.

``There's nothing magical,'' Schott said. ``The only way to double your revenue in our business is to get a new stadium.''

One of Selig's more pressing priorities is improving and changing the way baseball is marketed.

``We need to tell our story better, and more importantly, do everything we possibly can to make sure that our game is perceived as really good and attractive as it is,'' he said.

(Copyright 2003 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)