Mazeroski says Pete Rose doesn't deserve Hall of Fame

<br>BRADENTON, Fla. (AP) _ Bill Mazeroski is another Hall of Famer who thinks Pete Rose should not be reinstated to baseball. <br><br>Mazeroski, back in camp with the Pittsburgh Pirates as a special spring

Friday, February 27th 2004, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

BRADENTON, Fla. (AP) _ Bill Mazeroski is another Hall of Famer who thinks Pete Rose should not be reinstated to baseball.

Mazeroski, back in camp with the Pittsburgh Pirates as a special spring training instructor, said Rose doesn't deserve to be eligible for the Hall of Fame.

``Pete did a bad thing and he's paying for it like he's supposed to,'' Mazeroski said Thursday. ``He's got to pay for it somehow and now he's paying for it.''

Several other Hall of Famers have been outspoken in their criticism of Rose since he admitted in January to betting on baseball when he was manager of the Cincinnati Reds in the 1980s. If commissioner Bud Selig doesn't reinstate Rose within two years, Rose's chances of making the Hall of Fame will rest in the hands of the Veterans' Committee.

Mazeroski, elected by the Veterans' Committee in 2001, doesn't think Rose will get the necessary support. He also said Rose waited too long to make his confession.

``Maybe if he made a more sincere apology when he did it, but not 14 or 15 years later,'' he said. ``If he did that, maybe now things would be different for him.''

Mazeroski, widely considered the best defensive second baseman ever, will work with the Pirates middle infielders through March 10.