Conversation so far:
How was Bill James connected to the Dowd Report?
James heavily criticized the methodology of the Dowd Report.
what was the Dowd Report?
an investigation (commissioned by baseball commissioner Bart Giamatti) on the gambling activities of Pete Rose.
How did Bill James criticize it?
he found the case against Rose flimsy.
what was the case against Rose?
Rose bet on baseball.
Did he write about his opposition?
James expanded his defense of Rose in his 2001 book The New Historical Baseball Abstract.
Did he get any support for his criticism?
several critics claimed that James misstated some of the evidence.
who were some of the critics?
Derek Zumsteg of Baseball Prospectus.
What did Derek have to say about his abstract?
"James' defense of Rose is filled with oversights, errors in judgment, failures in research.
Was James every proved right or wrong with regards to his opinion on Dowd Report?
Rose admitted publicly that he had bet on baseball and confirmed the Dowd Report was correct.
Did James then retract his view of the report?
James remained steadfast.
what other interesting information can you give me?
James' attitude on the matter surprised many fans.

Question: what was his attitude?
Self-contained rewrite: what was Bill James's attitude?