The Curse of Rocky Colavito (1960-present) is a phenomenon that supposedly prevents the

Cleveland Guardians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (A ...

(MLB) from winning, be it the

World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the Worl ...

, the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league b ...

(AL) pennant, reaching

postseason The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eithe ...

play, or even getting into a pennant race. Its origin is traced back to the unpopular trade of right fielder Rocky Colavito to the

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...

for

Harvey Kuenn Harvey Edward Kuenn (; December 4, 1930 – February 28, 1988) was an American professional baseball player, coach, and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB). As a shortstop and outfielder, he played with the Detroit Tigers (1952–1959), Cle ...

in 1960. It was not claimed that Colavito placed the curse, and he has denied doing so. It is one of several curses believed to have stricken the city of Cleveland's major sports franchises for decades. The Guardians, then known as the Cleveland Indians, played in the World Series in

1995 File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The Great Hanshin earthquake str ...

1997 File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; '' Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of ...

, and

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, but lost all three to the

Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The Braves were founded in ...

Florida Marlins The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The club's home ballpark is LoanDepot Park. The fran ...

, and

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is locate ...

, respectively. Cleveland has not won a World Series since

1948 Events January * January 1 ** The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) is inaugurated. ** The Constitution of New Jersey (later subject to amendment) goes into effect. ** The railways of Britain are nationalized, to form British ...

Origins

On April 17, 1960, the then-

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central division. Since , they have ...

, traded Rocky Colavito to the

for

. This trade was unique because Colavito was 1959's American League home run champion, with 42, while Kuenn hit .353 as the A.L. batting champion. Fans in Cleveland were outraged by what they saw as the betrayal by the Indians' general manager,

Frank Lane Frank Charles Meyers LaneCorbett, Warren: ''Frank Lane,''

...

. In only two years with the Indians, Lane had taken a mostly successful 40-man roster and had traded away every player he had inherited. Detroit fans were mostly happy about the trade. The idea of the curse was first presented in print by

Terry Pluto Terry Pluto (born June 12, 1955) is an American sportswriter, newspaper columnist, and author who primarily writes columns for ''The Plain Dealer'', and formerly for the ''Akron Beacon Journal'' about Cleveland, Ohio sports and religion. Plu ...

, who had previously covered the Indians for ''

The Plain Dealer ''The Plain Dealer'' is the major newspaper of Cleveland, Ohio, United States. In fall 2019, it ranked 23rd in U.S. newspaper circulation, a significant drop since March 2013, when its circulation ranked 17th daily and 15th on Sunday. As of M ...

''. In his

1994 File:1994 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; The Kaiser Permanente building after the 1994 Northridge earthquake; A model of the MS Estonia, which sank in the Baltic Sea; Nels ...

book, ''The Curse of Rocky Colavito: A Loving Look at a Thirty-Year Slump'', Pluto suggested that the trade, made by Indians general manager

Frank Lane Frank Charles Meyers LaneCorbett, Warren: ''Frank Lane,''

...

to blunt Colavito's popularity and end his salary demands, led to a 34-season stretch where the Indians did not finish the season within 11 games of first place, from 1960 to . By 1994, the team had not won a pennant since , or a World Series since

. In ''The Curse of Rocky Colavito'', Pluto writes of many of the misfortunes that struck the Guardians following the Colavito trade: *Getting Colavito back in , from the

Kansas City Athletics The history of the Athletics Major League Baseball franchise spans the period from 1901 to the present day, having begun as a charter member franchise in the new American League in Philadelphia before moving to Kansas City in 1955 for 13 sea ...

, but sending pitcher

Tommy John Thomas Edward John Jr. (born May 22, 1943), nicknamed "The Bionic Man," is an American retired professional baseball pitcher who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for 26 seasons between 1963 and 1989. He played for the Cleveland Indians, ...

and outfielder

Tommie Agee Tommie Lee Agee (August 9, 1942 – January 22, 2001) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a center fielder from through , most notably as a member of the New York Mets team that became known as the ...

to the

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and ...

in a three-team trade. John, who had won only two games in the major leagues, would go on to win another 286, mostly for the

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League West, West division. Established in 1883 i ...

and

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one ...

, and play on four teams that reached the World Series. Agee, still a prospect when traded, would win the American League's Rookie of the Year award in . He then would be traded to the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major lea ...

, where his hitting and fielding would be a major factor in their World Championship season. *Trading pitcher Jim "Mudcat" Grant to the

Minnesota Twins The Minnesota Twins are an American professional baseball team based in Minneapolis. The Twins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. The team is named after the Twin Cities area w ...

in , for

Lee Stange Albert Lee Stange (October 27, 1936 – September 21, 2018) was an American professional baseball player and coach. During his playing career, the right-handed pitcher appeared in 359 games pitched in Major League Baseball over all or parts of ten ...

and George Banks. Grant was 28 years old and had won 67 games in his career. After the trade, he would win 78 more, including 21 in 1965, when he helped the Twins win their first pennant. Grant would later return to the Indians as a broadcaster. *The alcoholism of pitcher

Sam McDowell Samuel Edward Thomas McDowell (born September 21, 1942), is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a starting pitcher from 1961 to 1975, most notably for the Cleveland Indians. A six-time All-Star, ...

, who went from being one of the game's top pitchers in the 1960s to an unreliable pitcher who left the game at age 32. He would eventually stop drinking and become a counselor to athletes with drinking problems. *The mental illness of first baseman Tony Horton, a power hitter who couldn't handle the stress of playing in the major leagues, and left the game in the middle of the season at age 25. Like McDowell, he would receive treatment and recover, but he never returned to baseball. *The rushing of pitcher

Steve Dunning Steven John Dunning (born May 15, 1949) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a right-handed pitcher between and for the Cleveland Indians, Texas Rangers, California Angels, Montreal Expos and ...

to the major leagues. The second overall pick in the 1970 baseball draft, Dunning was brought straight to the major leagues from

Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is conside ...

without ever pitching in the minors. Called up too soon, he quit baseball in , at the age of 28, with a career record of 23 wins and 41 losses. *The signing and injury of Wayne Garland. In , Garland, a 25-year-old right-handed pitcher for the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. As one of the American League's eight charter ...

, won 20 games and lost only 7. A

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who i ...

after that season, the Indians offered him a contract worth $2.3 million over 10 years. But Garland hurt his

shoulder The human shoulder is made up of three bones: the clavicle (collarbone), the scapula (shoulder blade), and the humerus (upper arm bone) as well as associated muscles, ligaments and tendons. The articulations between the bones of the shoulder mak ...

in his first spring training with the Indians, and chose to pitch through the pain rather than have immediate surgery and went 13-19 in 1977. He retired in , at age 30, with a career record of 55-66. *The trade of pitcher

Rick Sutcliffe Richard Lee Sutcliffe (born June 21, 1956), nicknamed "The Red Baron", is an American former Major League Baseball pitcher with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Cleveland Indians, Chicago Cubs, Baltimore Orioles, and St. Louis Cardinals between 1976 and ...

to the

, along with two other players, for outfielders

Joe Carter Joseph Chris Carter (born March 7, 1960) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as an outfielder and first baseman for the Chicago Cubs, Cleveland Indians, San Diego Padres, Toronto Blue ...

and

Mel Hall Mel, Mels or MEL may refer to: Biology * Mouse erythroleukemia cell line (MEL) * National Herbarium of Victoria, a herbarium with the Index Herbariorum code MEL People * Mel (given name), the abbreviated version of several given names (including ...

and two others. Sutcliffe would help the Cubs win the National League Eastern Division title that year and won the NL's

Cy Young Award The Cy Young Award is given annually to the best pitchers in Major League Baseball (MLB), one each for the American League (AL) and National League (NL). The award was first introduced in 1956 by Baseball Commissioner Ford Frick in honor of Ha ...

, then won it again in 1989. He won 35 games in just over two seasons with the Indians, then won 114 more after they traded him. Hall was a good hitter but a disappointment, and though Carter became one of baseball's top sluggers with the Indians, they never had a pitcher as good as Sutcliffe while Carter was on the team. Carter would be traded to the

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penn ...

in for catcher

Sandy Alomar Jr. Santos "Sandy" Alomar Velázquez Jr. (, ; born June 18, 1966) is a Puerto Rican former professional baseball player, coach, and manager. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher between 1988 and 2007, most notably as a member of the Clev ...

and second baseman Carlos Baerga, possibly the best trade in the Indians' recent history, as Alomar and Baerga would be major cogs in their 1990s success. The Padres would trade Carter to the

Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...

, where he would lead them to back-to-back World Series wins, including , when his home run won the

Series Series may refer to: People with the name * Caroline Series (born 1951), English mathematician, daughter of George Series * George Series (1920–1995), English physicist Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Series, the ordered sets used in ...

. *The baseball preview issue of ''

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellence tw ...

'' magazine. Following a surprising 84-win season for the Indians in , the cover showed Indians sluggers Carter and

Cory Snyder James Cory Snyder (born November 11, 1962) is an American former professional baseball right fielder and the manager of the Northern Colorado Owlz. He played nine seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1986 to 1994 for the Cleveland Indians, ...

, and carried the words "INDIAN UPRISING" and the sub-headline, ''"Believe it! Cleveland is the best team in the American League!"'' The Indians lost 101 games that year (finishing with the worst record in Major League Baseball that season), though some believe that this collapse was partially caused by the ''Sports Illustrated'' cover jinx as well as this curse. *The spring training boating accident that killed relief pitchers

Steve Olin ''yes'Steve is a masculine given name, usually a short form (hypocorism) of Steven or Stephen Notable people with the name include: steve jops * Steve Abbott (disambiguation), several people * Steve Adams (disambiguation), several people * Steve ...

and Tim Crews and nearly killed starting pitcher

Bob Ojeda Robert Michael Ojeda (born December 17, 1957) is an American former professional baseball player, coach and television sports color commentator. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a left-handed pitcher from to , most notably as a memb ...

. As reliever

Kevin Wickander Kevin Dean Wickander (born January 4, 1965) is a former Major League Baseball player. A pitcher, Wickander played for the Cleveland Indians, Cincinnati Reds, Milwaukee Brewers, and Detroit Tigers from to . Wickander attended Cortez High School ...

was so grief-stricken at the loss of Olin that he was traded in mid-season and never regained his effectiveness, the Indians essentially lost four pitchers due to one accident. Since the book's publication in 1994, Pluto has written two sequels: ''Burying the Curse'' in 1995 and ''Our Tribe'' in

1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shoot ...

, the latter insisting that the curse was still in place. Despite the "evidence" of a curse on the team, Colavito has denied ever placing one.

Curse beyond Cleveland

On the day of the Colavito trade, the Indians played the Chicago White Sox in an exhibition game at 64-year-old

Russwood Park Russwood Park was a stadium in Memphis, Tennessee. It was primarily used for baseball and was the home of the Memphis Chicks minor league baseball team until the spring of 1960. The ballpark was originally built in 1896, and was known as Elm Wood ...

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the seat of Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 U.S. census, Memphis is the second-mo ...

. Colavito hit a home run in the second inning, and reporters in the press box were informed of the trade shortly thereafter. Four hours after the game ended, Russwood Park - constructed primarily of wood in 1896 - was destroyed in a five-alarm fire.

Another curse?

Prior to the publication of Pluto's book ''The Curse of Rocky Colavito'', there had been another explanation for the Guardians' difficulties, one that came after the 1954 World Series but preceded the 1960 Colavito trade. The then Indians fired manager Bobby Bragan in . According to the story, although he always denied it, Bragan walked out to the pitcher's mound at

Cleveland Municipal Stadium Cleveland Stadium, commonly known as Municipal Stadium, Lakefront Stadium or Cleveland Municipal Stadium, was a multi-purpose stadium located in Cleveland, Ohio. It was one of the early multi-purpose stadiums, built to accommodate both baseball a ...

and placed a curse on the Indians, saying they would never win another pennant.

References

External links

2007 interview with Rocky Colavito
{{Sports-related curses Cleveland Guardians Colavito Urban legends American folklore

Origins

Curse beyond Cleveland

Another curse?

See also

References

External links