What was the case against Rose?
Baseball started an investigation in February 1989 into allegations that Rose had been betting on sports, including baseball. These allegations came from one of Rose’s friends, Paul Janszen, and bookie Ron Peters. (Both had been convicted of felony drug charges.) Both offered documentary evidence of Rose’s betting to support their claims. Former federal prosecutor John Dowd was hired to conduct an investigation. The testimony of Janszen and Peters was corroborated by Rose’s phone records and bank records, which mirror the activity they described. Dowd uncovered other evidence which indicated Rose had used other “runners” besides Janszen to place his bets. Dowd discovered evidence that Rose had placed bets with other bookies, including several with ties to organized crime. Dowd also discovered evidence of hundreds of mysterious financial transactions between Rose and these bookies. Perhaps most damning was the testimony of Rose himself, given during two days of deposition in February 19
