Curse of Rocky Colavito: A Loving Look at a Thirty-Year Slump

Curse or Coincidence? April 1960: Cleveland trades Rocky Colavito for Harvey Kuenn. September 1961: Fireballer Sam McDowell, in his first major league start, breaks two ribs throwing a fastball. June 1964: Third baseman Max Alvis has an attack of spinal meningitis on a team flight. January 1965: The Indians reacquire Rocky Colavito, giving up Tommie Agee, who will win the Rookie of the Year Award, and Tommy John, who will win 286 games after leaving Cleveland. July 1970: Catcher Ray Fosse is steamrollered by Pete Rose in the All-Star Game; his promising career is derailed. June 1974: Drunken fans pour themselves onto the field during Ten-Cent Beer Night game, forcing a forfeit. March 1977: In his first spring-training game after signing a ten-year contract with Cleveland, Wayne Garland injures his arm and never recovers his twenty-win form. March 1978: Personal complications force the Indians to trade twenty-three-year-old fireballer Dennis Eckersley to Boston. July 1981: Cleveland Stadium is to host the All-Star Game. The game is delayed until August by a two-month players' strike. August 1981: Indians send 1980 Rookie of the Year Joe Charboneau to the minors; he hits just .217 for Class AAA Charleston. April 1987: Sports Illustrated predicts the Indians will win the pennant; the team finished last, losing 101 games. March 1993: Two pitchers die and a third is seriously injured in a boating accident; another Indians pitcher dies in an auto accident in November. July 1994: With the Indians poised to reach the postseason for the first time since 1954, the players go out on strike, an action that will lead to the cancellation of the World Series for the first time since 1904.