LAS VEGAS, Nev. - Pete Rose didnt want it to be about him, not on a day when four new members were elected to baseballs most exclusive club.Good picks all, Rose said, though he would have liked to see Mike Piazza get in, too. He believes Piazza was the best hitting catcher ever, which says something because Rose played alongside the best catcher ever in Johnny Bench on the Big Red Machine.Lets talk about them, not me, Rose said. Why take away from the four inductees? It would be like those policemen turning their backs on the mayor at the funerals in New York.Invariably, though, the talk returned to baseballs all-time hit king. Had to, because theres a big gap in Cooperstown where his Hall of Fame plaque should be.Its been a quarter-century since Rose agreed to a lifetime ban from the sport for betting on games, and almost that long since the Hall of Fame adjusted its rules to keep him off the ballot. Rose thought when commissioner Bart Giamatti issued the ban that it would include a chance to apply for reinstatement, but 25 years later theres been no sign that baseball will welcome him back.Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens may someday find their way into the hall despite being poster boys for the steroid era. Time has a way of healing all wounds, even those that were self-inflicted, and their monster numbers may impress some more voters a few years down the road.But time is running out on Rose. Hell be 74 in April and theres been no indication so far from Rob Manfred that he will be any more agreeable to Roses reinstatement when he takes over from Bud Selig as commissioner later this month than Selig himself was.Rose understands that. Hes also figured out by now that selling signed balls with the inscription Im sorry I bet on baseball isnt going to get him off the banned list.Yes, he bet on baseball, though he says it was always on his team to win when he was managing the Cincinnati Reds. And, yes, he continued to deny it until finally admitting it in a 2004 book that infuriated many in the sport.But hed like to hold out a little hope that his lifetime sentence wont last the rest of his life. Hed like to think that one January day not too far in the future he will be on a long overdue Hall of Fame ballot himself.Im not eligible, though Id like to be eligible, Rose said. Im the one that messed up, but if Im ever put on the ballot Ill be very happy about it.So would a lot of Pete Rose fans, who cant help but wonder why the juicers who made a mockery of the sport are still welcome in baseball while Rose is on the outside looking in. No matter how you feel about him betting on games, no one questions his numbers as they do those of several players who were on the latest Hall of Fame ballots.Those numbers more than speak for themselves. Rose played more games (3,562) than any other major leaguer, had more hits than any other player (4,256). He played in six World Series, winning three, and hustled every step of the way.He didnt pump steroids into his body to hit more home runs. He never tried to fix a World Series; not even a spring training game.Yes, his original ban was rightly imposed as a deterrent against someone else trying to fix games themselves. But after all these years, his punishment no longer fits the crime.Rose watched the latest selections Tuesday, applauding the election of Pedro Martinez, John Smoltz, Craig Biggio and Randy Johnson to the hall. He then headed to work at the Art of Music collectibles store at the Mandalay Bay where he spends most of his afternoons chatting with fans and signing merchandise they buy.A signed 8x10 of Rose sliding head-first into third base is $75, while the apology baseball goes for $299. For $199 fans can get another baseball with the inscription Hits: 4,256. Steroids: 0 on it.Hell be in Cooperstown this summer as he almost always is, though not for the actual induction ceremony itself. Like many other former players, he sets up shop that week to sell his merchandise to fans and the sons of fans who once watched him play.Its good money on a busy week, and Rose isnt going to apologize for being there. Its what he does for a living, and the reason he finally had to cut short a conversation about an induction of his own that will probably never come.Ive got two people waiting in line right now, he said. Could be busy day.____Tim Dahlberg is a national sports columnist for The Associated Press. Write to him at tdahlberg@ap.org or www.twitter.com/timdahlberg . Gerson Bautista Jersey . Campbell, playing on loan with Greek club Olympiacos, found the net with a left-footed shot in the 44th minute off a pass from second-half substitute Jorge Rojas to open the scoring at Estadio Nacional de Costa Rica. Norm Charlton Mariners Jersey . Vonn flew back to Vail, Colo., last week after hurting her surgically repaired right knee at a downhill race in France. "Her knee was swollen again after Val dIsere," U.S. womens head coach Alex Hoedlmoser told The Associated Press. https://www.cheapmariners.com/665k-tom-p...y-mariners.html. James Harden wasnt worried and told his coach as much. "He was fired up but I told him: Its OK. Were going to be all right," Harden said. And they were. Houston scored 17 straight points after that timeout, led by 10 from Harden, to take the lead and roll to an easy 129-106 win. Kyle Lewis Mariners Jersey . Fans in the Jets viewing region can watch the game on TSN Jets at 5:30pm ct and listeners can tune in to TSN Radio 1290 Winnipeg. Joel Pineiro Jersey . Anderson shook off some unusually poor shooting and hit two clutch 3-pointers in overtime that carried the New Orleans Pelicans to a 111-106 victory over the Detroit Pistons on Wednesday night.GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Blake Bortles rolled right, crashed into two defenders and floated a pass to an open receiver just before going down. The two players who had a beat on Central Floridas quarterback stayed on the ground, each pounding their hands into the turf as the receiver ran up the sideline. Out of reach all game, the Knights pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the bowl season by outlasting the nations top offensive team in a rousing BCS debut. Bortles stymied Baylor with his arm and legs while accounting for four touchdowns, Storm Johnson ran for three more scores and No. 15 Central Florida turned the highest-scoring Fiesta Bowl into a big-play party by outlasting the sixth-ranked Bears 52-42 on Wednesday night. "Theres not many outside of us who believe we had a chance, but we did and I think we showed what UCF football is all about," Bortles said. Central Florida (12-1) wasnt given much of a chance at all, entering the game as a 17-point underdog. The Knights didnt care about the spread and certainly didnt back down from the big, bad Bears, racing past Baylor with an array of big plays. They took an early 14-point lead and kept rolling, piling up 556 total yards in the second-highest scoring BCS bowl ever. Bortles, the junior who could be weighing a jump to the NFL, was the catalyst, throwing for three touchdowns on 20-of-31 passing and running for 93 yards and another score. Rannell Hall accounted for some of the biggest plays, catching four passes for 113 yards and two touchdowns. Johnson kept Baylor from ganging up on UCFs passing game, grinding out 124 yards on 20 carries. So much about having no shot. "Its a great win, a great feeling for everyone whos been through the program," UCF coach George OLeary said. Known for its offence prowess, Baylor (11-2) had a hard time keeping up with the Knights. The Big 12 champions finished with 550 total yards, but were uncharacteristically undisciplined, getting 17 penalties for 135 yards. Bryce Petty tried to keep the Bears in it, running for three touchdowns while throwing for 356 yards and two more scores. Lache Seastrunk had some big runs in the first half and finished with 117 yards. None of it was enough the way UCF ran through Baylors defence. "We caught a football team that was hot," Baylor coach Art Briles said. "They played extremely well early, got into us. We tried to play catch up the whole game, never could turn it around when it needed turning." The Fiesta Bowl was the BCS coming-out party for Baylor and Central Florida before college footballls switch to a playoff system next season.dddddddddddd The Bears had been building toward this since Briles became coach in 2009, winding up his high-octane offence to lead the nation in scoring and churn out the second-most yards in FBS history. Central Florida had a slower rise under OLeary. The coach who was fired by Notre Dame five days after being hired for lying on his resume has built his reputation back up in Orlando, taking a program that went winless in 2004 to the inaugural American Athletic Conference title and automatic BCS berth this year. The matchup was projected to be like the 2011 Fiesta Bowl, when mighty Oklahoma rolled over Connecticut 48-20. The Knights werent listening. They opened with a 76-yard scoring drive capped by Johnsons tackle-breaking 11-yard touchdown run. Johnson scored again on UCFs next possession, this one on a 2-yard run. The early 14-0 lead was expected. The team leading wasnt. Baylor finally revved up its offence late in the first quarter, scoring on a 1-yard TD sneak by Petty and Central Florida looked as if it was ready to fall apart with turnovers on three consecutive plays. Baylor only turned one of those into points: a 30-yard pass from Petty to Levi Norwood. Petty followed Johnsons fumble with an interception in the end zone, just his third of the season. "Unfortunately, that was the turning point in the game," Petty said. "We needed that to save momentum up for us, especially after a turnover. Turnovers in the red zone kill an offence." Then came the spectacular plays, seemingly one after another. Hall darted and dashed through Baylors defence for a 50-yard touchdown on a screen pass, with help from Josh Reeses downfield block. Petty hurtled himself into the end zone, flipping over UCFs Brandon Alexander to cap a 13-yard run. That gave Baylor 659 points, breaking the NCAA record for a 13-game season set by Texas (652) in 2005. The momentum was gone shortly after, when Hall turned a swing pass into a 34-yard touchdown -- assisted again by Reese -- to put the Knights up 28-20 at halftime. Petty scored his third touchdown on 1-yard run in the third quarter and dashed in for the 2-point conversion to tie the game, but Central Florida still wouldnt back down. Bortles hit Breshad Perriman on a 10-yard touchdown pass and opened the fourth quarter by scoring on a 15-yard run to put the Knights up 42-28. Even after Baylor moved quickly for a 9-yard touchdown run by Glasco Martin, UCF had an answer, going up 49-35 on Johnsons 40-yard run through the heart of the Bears defence. ' ' '