Major League Baseball

#TBT: Pete Rose recalls when All-Star Games were serious business

Published Jun. 25, 2015 3:35 p.m. ET

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ST. LOUIS -- Nowadays, the All-Star Game runs a notch above the baseline of friendly competition between the American League and National League (or, in this year's case, between the Royals and everyone else in baseball). Fans get mad if their pitcher breaks a bead of sweat because, let's face it, home-field advantage in the World Series is nice, but they've got to make it there first, and heaven forbid their pitcher gets injured in a glorified showcase.

But back when Pete Rose played, boy, that All-Star Game -- be it the one in which he ran over catcher Ray Fosse or any other -- was serious business.

How serious?

"When we played in the All-Star Games, we used to have a pregame pep talk by the president of the National League, whose name was Warren Giles," Rose said during a promotional appearance at a Gateway Grizzlies game last month. "And he seriously believed that the All-Star Game was his opportunity to show the world that the National League was superior to the American League. I mean, his veins would pop out -- 'If you guys don't win this game, you won't make the team next year!' And you wanted to make the team -- that's another negotiating tool you have."

The guys in the other dugout, meanwhile, weren't waving white flags and olive branches, either. One time, Rose decided to ask an old Little League teammate named Eddie Brinkman, who played in the American League, for some scouting info on AL pitcher Sam McDowell. Brinkman wasn't in the All-Star Game, but Rose soon found out league affiliation ran thicker than old friendships.

"I asked him about Sam McDowell," Rose recalled. "And he says, 'He's got a fastball and a curveball.' And (McDowell) got me two strikes and threw me a hard slider and struck me out. Eddie wouldn't even help me out -- he told me what he didn't have. Trying to win the game, and he's not even on the damn team."

Overall, Rose played in 17 All-Star Games and lost only once, in 1971 in Detroit.

"I remember my first All-Star Game was 1965, and I was a kid," he said. "And the guy lockered me in between [Willie] Mays and [Hank] Aaron. I'm saying, 'What the hell am I doing here?' Willie Mays sitting there, and Hank Aaron. And I'll never forget those guys. They made me feel like I was one of the guys. That's why I love those guys. Because I was part of the team, and we were trying to win the game."

You can follow Elisabeth Meinecke on Twitter at @lismeinecke or email her at ecmeinecke@gmail.com.

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