Rose: The Joy of Summer

The plane carrying the Cincinnati Reds bucked and yawed through a storm front, scattering drinks and scrambling stomachs. Peter Edward Rose, the irrepressibly proud captain of the Reds, used the moment to tease a teammate whose fear of flying far exceeded opposing pitchers' fear of his bat. "We're going down!" Rose shouted. Then the punchline. "We're going down, and I have a .300 lifetime average to take with me!"

Now he has a good deal more to be proud of. In his 16th major league season, "Charlie Hustle," the man of the headfirst slide, has plunged headlong into the record books, taking with him a new mark for consecutive-game hitting streaks by modern-era National Leaguers. Last week Rose surpassed Tommy Holmes' 37-game record, set in 1945. Then, tackling the American League, he moved past Ty Cobb (40 in 1911) and tied George Sisler (41 in 1922) in pursuit of Joe DiMaggio's 56-game major league record.

The fact that Pete Rose was hitting so consistently came as a surprise to no one, least of all Pete Rose. "When you think about it, it's strange I never had a long streak going before," he said after tying Holmes' record. "I've had nine 200-hit seasons. You'd think I'd have put some of those hits back to back." In fact, he has, putting together hitting streaks of 25 and 22 games and two stretches of 20.

Now 37, Rose has been a remarkably efficient hitting machine since winning rookie of the year honors in 1963. He has batted over .300 twelve times in the past 13 seasons, a relentless production that has carried him past Frank Frisch's record for switch-hitters and into the select circle of 3,000-hit men. While breaking Holmes' record, Rose performed with the tenacious concentration that has marked his career. Six times he kept the streak alive on his last turn at the plate.

As the streak grew, the adulation of the fans grew with it. Long one of the game's fiercest competitors, Rose has been booed with equal ferocity for his playing style. Never a graceful player, he made himself indispensable with the kind of hustle Enos Slaughter personified and the aggressive disregard for physical safety of Ty Cobb. Running like a blocking back, Rose has broken up more double plays--and infielder's pride--than any other man playing baseball today. During the 1970 All-Star game, a bone-crunching collision at home plate left Cleveland Catcher Ray Fosse sitting stunned in the dust and television viewers aghast. In 1973 Rose had a wrestling match with Mets Shortstop Bud Harrelson that left New York shrieking for his blood. Fans in rival cities pelted him with debris and jeered his every move.

Rose endured the slings and beer bottles without complaint and now frankly delights in the admiration for his feats "One of the nice things about the streak has been going around the league and experiencing the fans' reaction. Imagine me getting a standing ovation in New York I thought the only way I'd get a standing ovation in New York was to drop dead on the field."

Trying to tie Holmes' record, Rose was hitless when he came to bat in the seventh in New York. "Let's go, Pete!" chanted the Mets crowd. Rose promptly singled to left, took a big turn at first, then allowed himself an elated clap of his hands before tipping his cap to the fans. They stood and cheered for three minutes. Rose's first thought after getting his hit? "I wanted to be sure I had a chance at second in case the ball took a bad hop. We're in a pennant race, you know."

Cincinnati is in the pennant race primarily on the strength of Rose's resonant bat. The Big Red Machine has spent most of the season in the shop for repairs as a rash of injuries crippled key players. The first team played together only 22 times in the first 78 games. Catcher Johnny Bench has missed 33 games with a back injury suffered during an aborted slide. Wearing a thick corset, he is hitting .254 (compared with .274 in 1977).

Second Baseman Joe Morgan, twice the National League's Most Valuable Player, has suffered a series of injuries that has left him far off form. A solid hitter, Morgan can usually be counted upon for 20 home runs and three times as many stolen bases. This season he is hitting .260, has had just one home run since May 19 for a season total of eight. He has not stolen a base since mid-June. Centerfielder Cesar Geronimo, four-time Gold Glove winner, has been hurt too, further weakening the team up the middle.

Still, the Reds are in contention in the National League West, where a fine pennant race is shaping up with the surprising San Francisco Giants, leaders for most of the season, and the Los Angeles Dodgers, all within a series sweep of each other. Cincinnati's sturdy bullpen has helped save the day, and Rose is trying harder than ever, disregarding a bad shoulder and a gimpy knee. Says Rose, who separated from his wife this summer: "Nobody has as many personal problems as I have, and I think I have as many injuries as anybody. But I play. I want to play, and I want to play every day. Everybody tells me I'm crazy, but that's the only way I know." Says Manager Sparky Anderson: "He's the last of the old breed. I won't see another one like him in my time, and that makes me sad."

But there was only joy for Pete Rose last week and, for baseball, joy in him. At an age when most ballplayers are collecting their pensions, he still plays with the verve of a rookie delighting in his accomplishments. But through all the hoopla, he showed the canniness and instincts that have made him a consummate hitter. When Rose set the new National League record, Tommy Holmes rushed onto the field to congratulate him, and a swarm of photographers gathered to capture the moment. Rose smiled, shook hands and tipped his cap--all the while keeping one foot solidly planted on the bag. For 38 straight games, he had been a tough out, and even in his glory, Pete Rose was not about to stray from first. On base was where he belonged. qed

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