Editing Pete Rose (section)

====NL Rookie of the Year====
During a [[spring training]] game against the [[Chicago White Sox]] in 1963, the Reds' regular second baseman, [[Don Blasingame]], pulled a groin muscle; Rose got his chance and made the most of it. During another spring training game against the [[New York Yankees]], [[Whitey Ford]] gave Rose the derisive nickname "Charlie Hustle" after he sprinted to first base after drawing a [[Base on balls|walk]].<ref>{{cite web| url=https://www.espn.com/classic/biography/s/rosepete000824.html|title=Hustle made Rose respected, infamous|author=Bob Carter|publisher=[[ESPN]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url=http://articles.philly.com/2013-04-13/sports/38513466_1_pete-rose-reds-base| archive-url=https://archive.today/20130730044819/http://articles.philly.com/2013-04-13/sports/38513466_1_pete-rose-reds-base| url-status=dead| archive-date=July 30, 2013|title=Pete Rose brought hustle, first hit 50 years ago|author=Joe Kay|date=April 13, 2013|work=[[philly.com]]}}</ref> Rose adopted that nickname as a badge of honor. In [[Ken Burns]]'s documentary ''[[Baseball (TV series)|Baseball]]'', Ford's teammate (and best friend) [[Mickey Mantle]] claimed that Ford gave Rose the nickname after Rose, playing in left field, made an effort to climb the fence to try to catch a Mantle [[home run]] that was about a hundred feet over his head. According to Mantle, when he returned to the dugout, Ford said, "Hey, Mick, did you see ole Charley Hustle out there trying to catch that ball?"<ref name="pinstripeAlley">{{cite web |title=Pete Rose's history with the Yankees |url=https://www.pinstripealley.com/2015/12/16/10277854/yankees-history-pete-rose-charlie-hustle-mantle-ford |website=pinstripeAlley.com |access-date=January 19, 2019|date=December 16, 2015 }}</ref>

On April 8, 1963, Rose made his Major League debut against the [[1963 Pittsburgh Pirates season|Pittsburgh Pirates]] at [[Crosley Field]] and drew a walk in his first plate appearance. After going 0-for-11, Rose got his first career Major League hit on April 13, a triple off Pittsburgh's [[Bob Friend]]. He hit .273 for the year and won the [[National League (baseball)|National League]] (NL) [[MLB Rookie of the Year award|Rookie of the Year Award]], collecting seventeen of twenty votes.<ref>{{cite web| url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/awards/awards_1963.shtml|title=1963 Awards Voting|work=[[Baseball Reference]]}}</ref>

Rose entered the [[United States Army Reserves]] after the [[1963 Cincinnati Reds season|1963 baseball season]]. He was assigned to [[Fort Knox]] for six months of active duty, followed by six years of attendance with the 478th Engineering Battalion, an army reserve unit, at [[Fort Thomas, Kentucky]].<ref name=army>{{cite web|url=https://www.army.mil/article/130526/charlie_hustle_as_rose_sported_red_he_marched_in_army_green|title=Charlie Hustle: as Rose sported red, he marched in Army green|work=US Army|date=July 24, 2014|accessdate=October 1, 2024|first=Gavin|last=Lapaille}}</ref> At Fort Knox, Rose was a [[platoon guide]]. Rose remained at Fort Knox to assist his sergeant in training the next platoon and to help another sergeant train the fort's baseball team. Later in his Fort Thomas service, Rose served as a company cook, which entailed coming in early for the one-weekend-per-month meeting so that he could leave early enough to participate in Reds home games. Other Reds players in the unit included [[Johnny Bench]] and [[Alex Johnson]].<ref name=army/>