President Donald Trump said Friday that he would pardon baseball great Pete Rose and criticized Major League Baseball for barring the all-time hit leader from the sport's Hall of Fame for gambling.

Rose, who died last year at 83, was banned from baseball for life. He admitted in 2004 that he had bet on games, though never against his own team. Commissioner Rob Manfred in 2015 rejected Rose's bid for reinstatement.

"Over the next few weeks I will be signing a complete pardon of Pete Rose, who shouldn't have been gambling on baseball, but only bet on his team winning," Trump posted on Truth Social. "He never betted against himself, or the other team. He had the most hits, by far, in baseball history, and won more games than anyone in sports history."

Trump did not say what the pardon would cover. Rose served five months in prison after pleading guilty to tax evasion charges in 1990.

In a statement to ESPN, John Dowd, who investigated Rose for MLB in 1989 and served as Trump's lawyer seven years ago, noted that MLB is "not in the pardon business nor does it control admission to the HOF."

Rose, who spent most of his 1963 to 1986 career with the Cincinnati Reds, won the World Series three times and remains Major League Baseball's career leader in hits, games played, at-bats, singles and outs.

Reuters contributed to this report.

Pep Guardiola insists there's reason for optimism at Manchester City, despite a troubled campaign that has seen the defending champions reduced to battling for a place in the top four.

Following Wednesday's 1-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur, a result that boosted their hopes of playing Champions League football next season, the City boss laid out what he believes should be a "bright future" at the Etihad Stadium. (The victory moved them into fourth place, a point above Chelsea, with 11 games remaining.) "The young players and the new acquisitions maybe the club will do in the summertime -- in the next transfer window -- have to lead this club for the next few years," he said.

They echoed his comments after Sunday's 2-0 defeat to Liverpool. "I saw a bright future," Guardiola told the BBC. "Other than Kevin [De Bruyne] and Nathan [Ake], they are the future of this club in the next years, with others who will come in future windows.

Guardiola and new director of football Hugo Viana -- who has replaced the outgoing Txiki Begiristain -- are facing a summer rebuild as they plot their way back to the top. There's a core of established stars to build around and some exciting young players with huge potential, but also decisions to be made on some of the old guard, including Kevin De Bruyne, who is out of contract in the summer.

Ahead of Saturday's FA Cup fifth-round tie vs. Plymouth Argyle (stream LIVE, Saturday, 12:15 p.m., ESPN+), we take a look at the state of City and whether the future is as bright as Guardiola believes.

The untouchables

One nice thing for City is that they're not starting their rebuild from scratch. Erling Haaland has signed a mammoth contract that runs through 2034, and Phil Foden, who has already racked up more than 300 club appearances before the age of 25, has shown no desire to ever leave the Etihad.

Beyond those two, defender Rúben Dias has been a key part of City's success since arriving from Benfica in 2020 and is a vocal presence in the squad. He has struggled for form and fitness this season -- like many of his teammates -- but is still only 27 and a strong character in the dressing room. Dias could take on an even more prominent role if there is an exodus of experienced players in the summer.

There has been a long-held belief by some at City that Rodri would one day be keen to return to Spain, but that talk has died down and there's hope he will be fully recovered from his knee injury by the time preseason training begins in July and August.

The significant investment in Omar Marmoush in January means he will also be part of City's future. The Egyptian, signed for 60 million from Eintracht Frankfurt, has made a positive start in a difficult situation after joining an underperforming team midseason.

Legends coming to the end?

This is where Guardiola and Viana will have to make big decisions.

Éderson, Bernardo Silva, Ilkay Gündogan and Kevin De Bruyne have been cornerstones of the team that won the treble in 2023 and completed four titles in a row in 2024. But nothing lasts forever, and there are now serious question marks about their futures.

Each situation is different and delicate. De Bruyne is out of contract in the summer, while Gündogan has a one-year option in his deal that would take him to 2026 if it's exercised. There's interest in De Bruyne from teams in Saudi Arabia and the United States, and Galatasaray believe they have got a good chance of landing Gündogan. Éderson was close to moving to the Saudi Pro League last summer, and Silva has long wanted to return to continental Europe, whether Spain, France or Portugal.

The problem facing City is that Éderson, De Bruyne and Bernardo would need to be replaced, and that won't be cheap. Florian Wirtz at Bayer Leverkusen is a target to replace De Bruyne, but there would be stiff competition from Bayern Munich and possibly Real Madrid.

If Éderson leaves, City could either make Stefan Ortega first-choice and sign an understudy or make a move for another No. 1 such as FC Porto's Diogo Costa.

Are they part of the future, or is it time to go?

Top of the list is Jack Grealish. At 29 and with four years at City under his belt, he should be indispensable. But he's not. He has not been a regular in the team since the treble season, which means, naturally, his future is up in the air.

With two years left on his contract, City would demand a fee before letting him leave. There have been vague links with Tottenham Hotspur or a return to Aston Villa, but it's likely to take significant investment -- translation: wages plus transfer fee -- to get a deal over the line.

It's different with John Stones because the issue isn't his performances, but his durability. Into his ninth season at the Etihad and approaching his 31st birthday, he has only once been able to make more than 25 league appearances in a single campaign. His latest injury picked up against Real Madrid is set to rule him out for between eight and 10 weeks.

Guardiola's biggest problem this season has been injuries, and it would be natural if he began to favor players he knows can stay fit.

Youngsters looking to establish themselves

The success of City's next cycle will depend heavily on the young players the club have already invested in. If defenders Abdukodir Khusanov and Vitor Reis; midfielders Nico Gonzalez, Claudio Echeverri and Rico Lewis; and forwards Savinho, Jérémy Doku, Oscar Bobb and James McAtee can realize their undoubted potential, then their next formidable team won't be far away.

Savinho, Khusanov and Lewis -- all starters against Liverpool on Sunday -- are only 20, while Reis and Echeverri, two of the most exciting prospects to come out of South America in recent, are still teenagers. The main issue with young players is that there's always an element of risk.

It's impossible to tell at 19 or 20 who might be a world-beater by the time they're 25 or 26. City can only hope that the gambles pay off.

The next generation coming through

City have one of the best academy setups in the country and they currently sit top of Premier League 2 (for under-21s) and the under-18 Premier League north group. Midfielder Nico O'Reilly (19) and defender Jahmai Simpson-Pusey (19) have both made appearances this season, while striker Divin Mubama (20) scored against Salford City in the FA Cup in January.

City have been good at moving on young players for big fees, although they turned down a substantial bid from Chelsea for O'Reilly on deadline day in January. The decision might have been influenced by a growing feeling that City missed a trick by not asking for more when Cole Palmer moved to Stamford Bridge in 2023.

And what about Pep in all of this?

The City boss quieted the noise around his own future by signing a contract extension in November. His deal runs until 2027, and he insisted after the Champions League defeat to Real Madrid that he intends to honor it. But it hasn't stopped nagging questions about whether Guardiola needs the stress that comes with another rebuild. He has achieved everything in England and the only challenge left in management is to lead a national team at a major tournament. After such a grueling campaign and so many problems to navigate, City fans will only feel confident he's definitely staying when they see him on the training pitch preparing for next season.

MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- New York Knicks center Mitchell Robinson returned to action against the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday night, making his season debut following left ankle surgery.

Robinson finished with six points and five rebounds in 12 minutes off the bench in the Knicks' 114-113 victory.

"The first game back, for the amount of time he's been out, I thought it was really, really good." Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said. "We've been seeing it in practice, too. So this is the next step."

But as the 7-foot Robinson returned, New York dealt with the extended loss of reserve Ariel Hukporti. The Knicks announced Friday that the 6-11 rookie out of Germany underwent surgery to address a left knee meniscus tear sustained in Wednesday's win over Philadelphia.

Robinson, in his seventh season, averaged 5.6 points and 8.5 rebounds in 31 games in 2023-24 before he was lost for good in the second round of the playoffs. He has shot 70% from the floor in his career.

Thibodeau said before the game that Robinson "brings a different dimension to our team." Thibodeau expects rebounding and defense to be ahead of Robinson's offense as he returns after missing the first 58 games of the season.

"Short stints for a while to see where he is. Been out a long time," Thibodeau said, adding: "Obviously, games are a lot different than practice. He's a vet, so I think he understands who he is. Just playing to your strengths. Go as hard as you can."

Hukporti played 16 minutes in the win over the 76ers -- his first start of the season -- shooting 4-of-5 from the field for eight points. He also grabbed a pair of rebounds. For the season, Hukporti is averaging 2.1 points and 2.0 rebounds in 25 games.

He will be reevaluated in four to six weeks.

Orlando Magic guard Jalen Suggs is out indefinitely due to a trochlea injury in his left knee, the team announced Friday.

Suggs left a Jan. 3 game with back spasms and since then has made only one appearance -- in a Jan. 25 win over the Detroit Pistons. It was during his ramp-up to return to play that he experienced discomfort and had further testing.

Suggs is expected to make a full recovery. Known for his defense, Suggs is averaging career highs of 16.2 points and 4.0 rebounds in his fourth year.

The Magic (29-32) have lost three of their past four games and entered Friday seventh in the Eastern Conference. Orlando has three more games remaining on its seven-game homestand that continues Sunday against the Toronto Raptors.