The Philadelphia Phillies announced Wednesday that Pete Rose won't take part in the team's Alumni Weekend festivities at Citizens Bank Park on Aug. 10-13 "due to recent events." Rose had been voted by fans to be inducted into the team's Wall of Fame.
ESPN's Outside the Lines reported this week that a sworn statement by an unidentified woman, contained in a motion filed in John Dowd's defense against Rose's defamation lawsuit, alleges that Rose had a sexual relationship with the woman for several years in the 1970s, beginning before she turned 16.
"While I am truly honored that the Phillies fans voted for me to be this year's Wall of Fame inductee, I am concerned that other matters will overshadow the goodwill associated with Alumni Weekend, and I agree with the decision not to participate.