Former Big Red Machine star Pete Rose was dubbed "Charlie Hustle" early in his MLB career, by New York Yankees legends Mickey Mantle and Whitey Ford.
Some said it was after a bunt single. Others thought Mantle and Ford were poking fun at Rose for the way he sprinted to first base when he walked.
During a 2017 appearance at Green Diamond Gallery in Montgomery, Rose explained why he would run fast to first on a base on balls.
"I was eight or nine years old and watching (a game)," Rose said. "Enos Slaughter sprinted to first base on a walk. My dad told me that was what you needed to do to be in position to be able to advance further if possible. So I started doing it. I wasn't the best one on my team as a little boy. I had to be noticed. That became the way I played. My dad said the quicker you get to first base, the quicker you go around the bases. I played the way I was supposed to play. I played the same way always, from age 8 through every World Series. That is how you are supposed to play the game. Booing me inspired me."
Rose said his father helped instill his pursuit of success, but it wasn't easy.
"I've never been on a vacation in my life," Rose said. "I never missed a practice because my dad wanted me to be a switch batter. … My dad - when we went into a team funk, we didn't eat on the way home. Losing was like joining Jenny Craig."
Rose said the Big Red Machine had so much fun as a team.
"We all knew each other's jobs. (Manager) Sparky (Anderson) knew how to handle people. Twenty-five different personalities. And he was the best. He was the most successful. You can't put players in a position where they are going to fail. Sparky knew where to put players where they would succeed. I saw, as a manager, 32 players get their first hit. If you knew them like I did, that is why you bet on them. What are they going to do, suspend me? We tried to win every single game we possibly could. … Every year I thought (the Big Red Machine teams) could make the playoffs. You can't be satisfied as an athlete. Because tomorrow might never come. … Be aggressive, be more aggressive. Never be satisfied. That's the advice I would give kids today. The most important thing to teach any kid is to win. The most important thing: to win the game. That's the attitude you have to teach. … Don't worry about what you did yesterday. Worry about what you are going to do tomorrow. You can control that."
Someone's cell phone rang as Rose was addressing the group at Green Diamond.
"Answer that, it might be the commissioner," Rose joked. "You live with it. I made mistakes and you deal with it. I don't worry any longer about waking up wondering if I am going to make it in the Hall of Fame. I just want to wake up."
Rose said his statue outside Great American Ball Park was a bigger deal than National Baseball Hall of Fame induction.
"There are more Hall of Famers than numbers retired and very few statues," Rose said.
Rose said he thought Babe Ruth was the greatest player ever.
"I would love to just hang out with him," Rose said. "Babe Ruth did something that no one else did. He saved the game. (I) met Babe Ruth's daughter. I was more nervous talking to her than facing a judge."
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This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Why Pete Rose, aka Charlie Hustle, sprinted to first base after a walk
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