Joe Jackson and Pete Rose Should Be HOFers Because...

[BobC]

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

I don't know that I would let him into the Hall because the evidence does suggest he took the money, but I don't disagree he probably just handled the whole thing terribly and didn't know what to do. Hopefully without sounding politically incorrect, he was not sophisticated, I believe he was functionally illiterate, and he may just have been out of his element and didn't have the confidence to go against much less report his teammates.

Can't disagree with you. Still say he was a pawn in all this and likely doesn't deserve the treatment he got as he was taken advantage of by both his teamates and Comiskey. Once he told Comiskey what had happened, I'm guessing he figured he did the right thing and then followed his orders. How was he to know just how crooked and conniving Comiskey and his attorneys could be. In his defense though, MLB should have gone after and similarly booted Comiskey for his actions in all this, or should I say inactions. The fact that nothing seemed to blow back on Comiskey just helps to show how corrupt and collusive the MLB owners could be. The fact that the rest of the owners didn't band together to oust Comiskey because of all this just makes you wonder what he had on all them that kept them quiet.