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Pete Rose allowed to participate in All-Star game, MLB commish says

Pete Rose was one of the Reds World Series winners honored in 2013. (AP)
Pete Rose was one of the Reds World Series winners honored in 2013. (AP)

We knew that Pete Rose would likely be a part of the MLB All-Star game this July in Cincinnati. Reds owner Bob Castellini said so in January. But on Thursday, we heard that come directly from the mouth of MLB commissioner Rob Manfred.

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And, as you can imagine, Pete Rose getting an endorsement from the sitting MLB commissioner is a big deal. Manfred, speaking at a meeting with the Associated Press Sports Editors, told reporters:

"I've agreed with Mr. Castellini that we're going to have a conversation about what specific kind of participation the Reds are interested in, and we have not had that conversation yet," Manfred said. "You can rest assured that he will about allowed to participate in some of the activities."

MLB is running a Franchise Four vote that will honor four icons of each ball club at the All-Star game. Some people figured that would be a loophole to get Rose involved in the Cincy celebrations without MLB officially "allowing" him in. Sure enough, Rose is the leading vote-getter for the Reds.

But it doesn't sound like, based on Manfred's comments Thursday, that Rose's participation is contingent on the Franchise Four vote, so that's an encouraging sign for anybody hoping for smoother relations between baseball's all-time hit leader and the commissioner's office.

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Rose has already petitioned Manfred for reinstatement, a prudent move with a new commissioner in office. Manfred said Thursday he's preparing to review documents related to the Rose case:

"We have gathered volumes, I mean literally volumes of documents, related to the original investigation," Manfred said, explaining how they had been brought out of storage. "They're in the process of organizing those, preparing summaries so that I can review those documents."

Being involved in the Cincinnati All-Star game and getting a full reinstatement are two vastly different things, of course. One certainly doesn't fast track the next. Nonetheless, the MLB commissioner giving Rose his stamp of approval — however limited it is — signals that ol' Pete might just have a hope.

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Mike Oz is the editor of Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at mikeozstew@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!