BRISTOL, Conn. – Pete Rose will be the subject of an ESPN movie beginning production this spring.
“Hustle,” will premiere on Sept. 25, ESPN executive vice president Mark Shapiro announced Tuesday. The two-hour movie will focus on events in Rose’s life and baseball career in the mid- to late 1980s, including the lifetime ban he agreed to following an investigation of gambling – a suspension that has kept the career hits leader off the Hall of Fame ballot.
“The saga of Pete Rose – who in many ways epitomized the word hustler – is a truly American melodrama which has captured a nation’s attention for 15 years,” Shapiro said. “This project continues our strategy of presenting compelling films which transcend sports – a morality tale with complex, conflicted characters struggling to do what is right.”
The network has already done films on basketball coach Bob Knight and football coach Bear Bryant, and has an upcoming project on the late auto racing star Dale Earnhardt set to air this summer.
