On a crisp spring night back in 1963 a young rookie draws a walk against Yankees pitcher Whitey Ford during a pre-season game and he sprints for 1^stbase. Ford derisively calls him “Charlie Hustle” and the rookie proudly adopts it as his nickname, considering it a badge of honor. The legend of Pete Rose is born.

As any fan of baseball knows, Pete Rose was and is one of the greatest players of all time. From humble beginnings in Ohio he quickly became the greatest player of his era with his “never say die, here comes Charlie Hustle!” attitude Continue Reading →

As mind boggling as it sounds, it has been 103 years since the Chicago Cubs last won a World Series title. Just as astonishing it has been 66 years since they even made it to the championship game. Although the Cubs have had a strong decade, making it to the post season 3 times since 2003 which all ended in disappointment, that accounts for 50% their playoff appearances since 1945. The facts defy reality, it has not been through lack of trying that the Cubbies have failed year in and year out. They have one of the highest payrolls in Major League Baseball and routinely make bids on star players to bolster their roster. It seems like the Chicago Cubs are cursed but how? Is it the goat incident from 100 years ago? Did they build Wrigley Field on an Indian graveyard? Continue Reading →

The L.A. Lakers have been so good over the past 10 years that most NBA fans don’t realize that they are about to enter one of their notorious, prolonged, hiatuses from the league. As the star power that has driven the team slowly fades away you realize that Kobe Bryant is essentially all by himself. Once Kobe leaves the team the Lakers will again vanish from the public psyche as they have so many times in the past. Continue Reading →

Former St. Louis Cardinals player Albert Pujols, known to fans and sports broadcasters everywhere as simply “The Machine”, has recently signed a massive contract worth $240million to play for the Los Angeles Angels. His impact on the Angels win/loss column will be immediate, profound and long lasting. Although the Angels have been a Mickey Mouse ball club for most of their 51 year history, hitting rock bottom in the mid-nineties as one of the worst clubs in the majors, Continue Reading →