LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — The baseball world and its fans lost a legend this week. MLB's all-time hit leader, Pete Rose, died at the age of 83.
Rose is best known for his time with the Cincinnati Reds— but he also had a deep connection to Las Vegas.
Pete Rose was among the best at the plate— having the nearly unbreakable record of recording 4256 hits.
After he retired, he moved to Las Vegas and spent a lot of his time meeting fans and autographing baseballs. The players who had the privilege of playing with or against him said he will always be one of one.
"I was totally shocked because we have the same agent and he was just telling me he was In Nashville signing autographs on Sunday," said Bill Madlock, four-time NL batting champion.
Madlock played in the same era as Rose and had a front row seat to one of the greatest hitters of all time.
"Pete always been my favorite because the first game I ever went to was down at old St. Louis and Cincinnati was playing," Madlock said.
Watching Pete playing I was like....'that kid is crazy'. He's running. He's diving when it didn't really mean anything. The thing about Pete...once you see him on the field...100 percent. Once you see him off the field...100 percent too.
Along with the hit king title, Rose still holds the all-time record for most games played at 3,562.
All these year's later, Madlock still passes down the hitting lessons he learned from Charlie Hustle.
"He was the type of guy...if he got one hit, he wanted two. If he got two hits, he wanted three. I always tell them...never be satisfied as a hitter. They said 'where did you learn that from?' I said...from Pete Rose," Madlock said.
Rose was banned for life from baseball because of a gambling scandal and remains ineligible for the hall of fame.
Madlock said he understands why Rose hasn't been voted in, but also said his greatness is undeniable.
Johnny: Should Pete Rose be In the Hall of Fame?
Madlock: "That's a tough question. I don't know about the gambling stuff, but I know that if you watch Pete play, you know he would never throw a game because he played too hard I listen to Johnny Bench when he said 'rules are rules.' As far as me, he's a hall of famer. Pete probably worked harder than anyone that I ever seen. I truly will miss Pete. I'll miss talking to him."
