I have a thing for flawed athletes.

I can’t exactly pinpoint the reason or when my intrigue began, but I’m far more fascinated by the pros who don’t always act the part.

What I’m trying to say is that a guy like Manny Ramirez is infinitely more interesting to me than, say, Derek Jeter. I like to watch and root for guys who are sometimes goofy or show obvious and glaring flaws. It shows a human side that I think more people are able to relate to.

I have always rooted for Marat Safin, who retired from professional tennis this week. A former No. 1 player in the world, winner of two Grand Slam titles and a complete headcase. Many still consider his career to be somewhat of a disappointment.

I consider myself a former headcase on the tennis court, so Safin’s outbursts and racquet-smashing displays only endeared him more to me. Early-tournament exits made me root harder for him the next time, and when he actually put it all together and played like the dominant player he could be for an extended stretch, it was that much more rewarding to witness.

As a young baseball fan, my favorite players were Darryl Strawberry and Dwight Gooden. Both men had the potential to be the best players of their generation. But they let outside influences effect their on-field performance and stumbled into trouble again and again.

Yet their actions never seemed malicious, just misguided. So it was easy for me to forgive and keep their reputations in good standing. Gooden was thrust into the spotlight at 19 years of age and his later actions should have been somewhat expected.

He tested positive for cocaine three times as a Met, the final one seemingly too much for him to handle. His wife later found him in their home with a loaded gun pressed to his head.

When he returned to Shea Stadium for the final game before it was to be torn down at the conclusion of the 2008 season, it was the first time he had been back in the building since 2000. He received an electric ovation from everyone in attendance.

Coincidentally, my room got a bit dusty.

That moment didn’t feel anything like a former employee coming back to his office. It felt like a son returning to the open arms of his forgiving parents. A kid who left home on bad terms, but found his way back after some difficult times.

Others I’ve cheered for include NBA bad boys Rasheed Wallace, Allen Iverson and Ron Artest. Yet through all their antics, these players are probably on the tame side compared to the man who I consider to be the most fascinating athlete of my lifetime: Mike Tyson.

Tyson really deserves his own column, but here is the Cliffs Notes version:

Here’s a guy who grew up in Brooklyn, was arrested 38 times by age 13, then went to live with his boxing coach at age 16. He became the most famous boxer in the world by age 19 and could knock out opponents like nobody the sport had ever seen.

But he is also a guy who befriended pigeons on his rooftop and fed them daily, counting on them to bring some stability to his chaotic life.

He served three years in prison from 1992 to 1995 after a rape conviction that he still disputes. He bit off Evander Holyfield’s ear. He brawled with Lennox Lewis at a pre-fight press conference and allegedly bit his leg in the melee. Shortly before a fight against Clifford Etienne, he got a large tattoo on the left side of his face.

“I’m really embarrassed with myself and my life,” he said in 2005. “I want to be a missionary. I think I could do that while keeping my dignity, without letting people know they chased me out of the country. I want to get this part of my life over as soon as possible.”

Very few ever reach such highs and also sink to such lows as Tyson has. He is a tragic figure who appears to be completely self-aware, yet also incapable of altering his course.

The fact that a man can seem so vicious and inhuman, speak of himself in such a disgusted fashion, then quip “I don’t have the desire to hurt anyone anymore. I see a fly, but I don’t have the nerve to get up and kill it… I just don’t have the guts for it anymore. I don’t want to disgrace the sport. This is a great sport. It can take men from humble beginnings and have them rub shoulders with royalty,” truly astonishes me.

Just possessing incredible skill doesn’t make a person suitable for public consumption. Without his incredible left hook, Tyson, by his own admission, would have probably been serving a life sentence or dead by his mid-20s.

I’ve been rooting for Tyson to have some sort of happiness in his life, especially following the tragic death of his 4-year-old daughter earlier this year. Unfortunately, it seems he has put himself in another bad situation and could be headed back to prison after a scuffle with a photographer this week may have violated his probation.

While the perfect athletes are great to cheer for and admire, I typically find myself investing more in those with flaws. The gamble is greater. The risk-reward slope is much steeper.

Who knows if Tyson will ever provide his fans and the general public with a moment like Gooden did in 2008?

If he doesn’t, it should be expected. But if he does, it will be extraordinary.