Pete Rose dismissed questions Sunday about his first appearance on the field in Philadelphia since the franchise scrapped plans in 2017 to honor him because of a woman's allegation that she had sex with baseball's hit king when she was a minor.
"It was 55 years ago, babe," Rose told a female baseball writer for The Philadelphia Inquirer.
Rose, 81, declined to answer any other questions in the dugout moments after a team photo in the outfield meant to celebrate the Phillies' 1980 World Series championship team and other former players. The original 1980 anniversary celebration was postponed for two seasons because of the coronavirus pandemic.