MLB news: Trump and Rob Manfred meet at White House amid Pete Rose discourse

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred and President Donald Trump met at the White House Wednesday, MLB confirmed to Fox News Digital.

What Manfred and Trump discussed is unclear. The Washington Post was the first to report on the meeting. 

“President Trump is a longtime fan of baseball. As he has done in the past, Commissioner Manfred was pleased to visit the White House again to discuss issues pertaining to baseball with the president,” an MLB spokesperson told Fox News Digital of the visit. 

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President Donald Trump speaks during an event on energy production in the East Room of the White House April 8, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

The White House did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment. 

One thing Trump and Manfred may have discussed is the subject of Pete Rose’s Hall of Fame candidacy. Trump said he would pardon Rose posthumously after he died at age 83 in September 2024. 

“Major League Baseball didn’t have the courage or decency to put the late, great, Pete Rose, also known as ‘Charlie Hustle,’ into the Baseball Hall of fame. Now he is dead, will never experience the thrill of being selected, even though he was a FAR BETTER PLAYER than most of those who made it, and can only be named posthumously. WHAT A SHAME!” Trump posted to Truth Social in February.

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MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred before Game 4 of the 2024 World Series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium in New York Oct. 29, 2024. (Brad Penner/Imagn Images)

“Anyway, over the next few weeks I will be signing a complete PARDON of Pete Rose, who shouldn’t have been gambling on baseball, but only bet on HIS TEAM WINNING. He never betted against himself, or the other team. He had the most hits, by far, in baseball history, and won more games than anyone in sports history. Baseball, which is dying all over the place, should get off its fat, lazy a–, and elect Pete Rose, even though far too late, into the Baseball Hall of Fame!”

Rose is MLB’s hit king with 4,256 career hits. He was the National League MVP in 1974 and was a 17-time All-Star, a three-time World Series champion and a three-time batting champion. 

However, the Cincinnati Reds star became a polarizing figure when news of his gambling on games rocked the sports world. Rose received a lifetime ban from MLB in 1989.

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President Donald Trump smiles after signing an executive order. (AP/Alex Brandon)

The meeting between Trump and Manfred also comes after a feature story about Jackie Robinson’s military service was briefly taken down from the Department of Defense’s website for a day before being restored. 

MLB celebrated Jackie Robinson Tuesday, April 15, the 78th anniversary of Robinson breaking MLB’s color barrier. 

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