He feels he has done his part, confessed that he bet on baseball. But instead of absolution, he hears condemnation: His apology came too late, was insincere, upstaged the Hall of Fame and brought him more money.
"Now you're coming clean, and it's not good enough," he said Thursday during a 30-minute interview with the Associated Press. "It's not right. So how can I win? How can I win if people aren't going to be fair with me?"
Rose says he craves a full and unconditional pardon from commissioner Bud Selig. He wants to get into the Hall of Fame, but he said what he really wants is the chance to manage again.
Rose says a reinstatement with restrictions would be unfair.
"I don't know if they would ever say, "We'll reinstate you but you can't work in baseball.' I don't think that's the American way, I really don't," Rose said.
In his second autobiography, Pete Rose: My Prison Without Bars, released Thursday, he finally confesses that he bet on the Reds while he managed the team in the late 1980s, leading to the lifetime ban he agreed to in 1989.
Rose held a book signing in Ridgewood, N.J., asking fans to read the book before judging him. More than 200 people lined up for Rose's first public event since acknowledging he bet on baseball.
"I think the fans all realize I made the mistakes and I'm sorry that I did, and I want to put it behind me," Rose said during the signing. "I don't want to live in the past."
Rose had hoped the release of the book would end the public debate over whether he deserved a second chance. Instead, initial reaction to excerpts published by Sports Illustrated this week was largely negative.
Hall of Fame vice chairman Joe Morgan, his former Reds teammate, condemned the commercial aspect of the confession and saw no contrition. Morgan said Rose should be "standing up and apologizing for what he's done" instead of making money from the admission.
AURILIA TO MARINERS: Seattle agreed to terms with free-agent shortstop Rich Aurilia, then traded infielder Carlos Guillen to the Tigers for shortstop Ramon Santiago and minor-league shortstop Juan Gonzalez.
VAUGHN OUT: Mo Vaughn will not play baseball in 2004 and is doubtful for 2005 because of an arthritic left knee. The Mets first baseman went on the disabled list May 3 with joint and cartilage damage in his knee and didn't play again.
CLEMENS PONDERS: Roger Clemens' agent, Randy Hendricks, expects the pitcher to decide by the end of the month whether to join his close friend Andy Pettitte with the Astros.
EX-OUTFIELDER ARRESTED: Former centerfielder Otis Nixon was arrested after police said he threatened his bodyguard with a knife at a suburban Atlanta hotel early Thursday morning.
INDIANS: Right-hander Jose Jimenez signed a one-year contract worth just over $1-million to be Cleveland's setup man.
MARLINS: Consultants seeking to satisfy the team's desire for a new home unveiled the city's latest proposal, a ballpark that would be built adjacent to the Orange Bowl near downtown. There's no financing plan for the project, which has an estimated cost of $375-million.
YANKEES: Rick Down was hired as coordinator of minor-league instruction about two months after being fired as hitting coach.
