It's one of the most infamous highlights in sports history. In the 12th inning of the 1970 All-Star Game in Cincinnati, Reds outfielder Pete Rose ran over Indians catcher Ray Fosse at home plate to score the game-winning walk-off run.
Here's the video:
Initial x-rays showed no injury, though it was later determined Fosse suffered a fractured and separated shoulder. The injury wasn't treated right away and did not heal properly, leaving Fosse with arthritis to this day.
"My body hurts. My shoulder still hurts," said Fosse to the Associated Press this week while noting he is proud he played through the injury. "There was not anybody at the time to say, 'Don't play.' I continued. That's something that I take with a lot of pride."
"They didn't have the technology, I didn't see any of it, as far as X-rays, no MRI, not really anything," added Fosse. "Even though I was hurt and probably shouldn't have played, there was no injury that actually showed. It just was internal. As it turned out it was a fractured, separated shoulder. Things were different then."
Fosse hit .312/.366/.527 (147 OPS+) with 16 home runs before the All-Star Game in 1970 and only .297/.353/.361 (104 OPS+) with two home runs after. He dropped down to .276/.329/.397 (98 OPS+) in 1971 and hit .246/.294/.344 (84 OPS+) the rest of his career.
It is widely believed the collision and shoulder collision ruined Fosse's career. After all, you're not going to be able to hit and play properly with a damaged shoulder.
"We probably wouldn't be talking now," jokes Fosse when asked whether he thinks about how his career would have played out had the collision not happened. "From a pure baseball standpoint, I really haven't thought about it that much. All I know is that having hit 16 home runs at the All-Star break, could I have hit 30? Could I have hit 30 annually?"
Rose came under heavy criticism for such an aggressive play in an All-Star Game, even though it created the winning run for the NL team. He remains defiant and insists he did nothing wrong.
"No. 1, I didn't break the rules," said Rose during a conference call Thursday. "Two, I did not try to purposely hurt him. Three, I did not ruin his career. Four, I took him out to eat the night before the game."
Fosse, now 68 and working as a broadcaster covering the Athletics, said he has no regrets about the play even though his career may have been ruined and he still has shoulder pain to this day.
"I wouldn't change a thing," he said. "Long after I'm gone, I'm sure they'll still be showing the play. It's part of the great game and I would never, ever say there's any animosity or hard feelings about anything, about playing a game that I loved and still love."
The 2015 All-Star Game will be played on Tuesday, July 14 in Cincinnati, the same city where the Fosse/Rose collision took place.
