ST. LOUIS -- Hall of Fame or not, Pete Rose can still draw a crowd.
Take superfan Jesse Bernard, who drove more than five hours from Kentucky to Sauget, Illinois, for Opening Day at GCS Ballpark, where the Frontier League Gateway Grizzlies were hosting an extravaganza that featured an opportunity to meet the hit king.
Bernard wore this:
Wardrobe for Pete Rose fan at Gateway Grizzlies opening day (Rose is guest coaching 1st, 3rd base) pic.twitter.com/A5yOHLNniU
— Elisabeth Meinecke (@lismeinecke) May 16, 2015
"He's paid his debt," Bernard said. "Nobody played the game like Pete Rose, and they never will."
Bernard, who's been a Rose fan all his life, carried the hit king's baseball card around in his pocket as a kid. He was there Friday with his brother, Paul, who recalled the first time he got to see Rose play in Cincinnati while decked out in his Little League uniform.
Meanwhile, the guest of honor Friday sported a Grizzlies jersey on the field -- with No. 14, of course -- and received a pregame video tribute, then served a brief stint coaching first and third. When given a microphone during breaks in play, Rose worked the crowd of 5,344, talking about Stan Musial and joking about the Cubs. Rose also took a trip to the press box and provided some in-game analysis on the Grizzlies' broadcast.
The only thing he couldn't manage was to bring some luck to the home team, which lost 6-2 to the Rockford Aviators on an evening that featured perfect baseball weather. The storms that clouded the area earlier had moved on, and a spring air gradually descended on the park.
Pete Rose was back, right were he belonged.
You can follow Elisabeth Meinecke on Twitter at @lismeinecke or email her at ecmeinecke@gmail.com.
