Mike Schmidt has issued strong support for Pete Rose's reinstatement in a column written for The Associated Press. "Pete bet on his team to win and has been banished from baseball for life," Schmidt wrote. "Manny Ramirez, Alex Rodriguez et al, bet that they would get bigger, stronger and have a distinct advantage over everyone and that they wouldn't get caught. Which is worse? Does the penalty fit the crime?" Recently, Hank Aaron has gotten behind Rose as well. "All of us thought this was a new life for Pete, as Aaron is close to commissioner [Bud] Selig and could sway fellow members," Schmidt added.