The furor over Pete Rose's clandestine Help-Mister-Wizard meeting with Bud Selig obscured an even more surprising meeting the commissioner held a few days later.

"Mr. Jackson, welcome, come sit down. Can I get you something to eat or drink?''

	"Shoeless" Joe Jackson remains one of baseball's greatest players but ineligible for induction to the Hall of Fame.

"Well, no, sir. Thank you.''

"Oh, that's right. You've been dead quite a while, haven't you?''

"Is that a problem?''

"Oh, not at all. I could tell you stories about ... well, never mind. Anyway, what can I do for you?''

"I understand you just had a chat with Pete Rose about reinstating him.''

"That's right, but we're trying to keep it out of the papers. You know how they can be.''

"So I hear. Anyway, I'm thinking that if Mr. Rose is going to be reinstated and voted into the Hall of Fame and all, I couldn't help thinking about ... well, me.''

"And well you should, Mr. Jackson.''

"Please, call me Shoeless.''

"Since you clearly are.''

"Exactly. Anyway, can I come back now?''

"Well, you know, I'm sort of flying seat-of-the-pants here with Pete. We're trying to get him to admit he bet on baseball games before we do anything, but for now we're still in sort of a holding pattern on that. And there are the financial concerns.''

"Pardon?''

"Well, it seems he always ends up on these MasterCard Great Players/Great Moments/Bad Haircuts lists, and we have a long-standing relationship with MasterCard's money.''

"And?''

"And he shows up at these big events and gets huge ovations. Hey, they love him. Beat me, too, because they always boo me.''

"Well, that's unfortunate. But I'd still to know if this could possibly benefit me. Precedent and all.''

"Well, we're not sure, like I said. We are, of course, familiar with your case, and I personally thought that D.B. Sweeney did a hell of a job being you in 'Eight Men Out.' I'd like him to play me when my story comes out.''

"They're doing a movie on you?''

"Only if we can get Jennifer Lopez to play my wife. Her idea.''

"Jennifer Lopez?''

"Mary Pickford for the new millennium.''

"Oh.''

"Anyway, we're not done on the Rose thing, as I said, but we would certainly take your case under advisement. I mean, we'd be countermanding a ruling by Bart Giamatti, who I knew and who was one of my dearest friends when he wasn't ruling against the owners. But with you, we'd be countermanding an order from Kenesaw Mountain Landis, and I never met him.''

"I did. He was kind of a bastard.''

"I can see where you'd feel that way.''

"Anyway, Mr. Commissioner, I would surely be obliged to you if you would give my case some new consideration. And perhaps some of my teammates as well.''

"Well, I certainly will look into it, Shoe. But I can't say that it will be easy for you. All the Hall of Famers who saw you are just as dead as you, after all. Even the Veterans Committee.''

"I've read some of these new sportwriters. The dead guys are still better now than they'll ever be.''

"You got that right. In fact, I have a list here of writers I'd like to see ... but never mind that. I think we could probably do something for you, but I can't be sure about any of the others. Eddie Cicotte was certainly a fine pitcher and David Strathairn did a nice job on him, but I can't say I feel quite as warm toward Buck Weaver. I mean, I generally like John Cusack, but he kind of gave me the creeps in 'The Grifters.' ''

"Sir?''

"Just movie talk. If I couldn't be Henry Aaron in the next life, I'd like to be the thin one who gets yelled at by Roger Ebert.''

"Sir?''

"And then there are days when I wish I was Don Fehr's law professor in college, and I could flunk him right out of school, and then ...''

"Sir?''

"Oh, I'm sorry, Mr. Jackson, Shoe'. Listen, let me get back to you on this. It may take awhile.''

"I'm not going anywhere.''

"Tell me about it.'' Ray Ratto is a columnist with the San Francisco Chronicle and a regular contributor to ESPN.com