There probably are easier and perhaps smarter things you can do than try to battle ESPN, Comcast Sports Net, and the major newspapers in Chicago. But that’s the challenge being taken on by Jonathan Eig.

Eig, who wrote bestselling books on Lou Gehrig, Jackie Robinson, Al Capone (which one of those three subjects doesn’t fit in with the other two?) has launched Chicagosidesports.com. Despite several sports site dedicated to covering all things Chicago sports, Eig thinks there is room for another one.

In an interview I did with him for my blog at Crain’s Chicago Business, he said:

“I just felt there’s a great appetite for sports news that isn’t being met on  the Internet. The Tribune and Sun-Times have good sports  coverage, but they haven’t really packaged it for the web. ESPN is the 800-pound  gorilla, but ESPNChicago hasn’t made the effort to make it look Chicago. It  doesn’t look any different than ESPNLA. It’s not something people are talking  about.”

Basically, Eig’s site is running one feature/analysis piece per day. Case in point is a story by former Bulls player Paul Shirley on his realization that his playing career was over. Thursday, Eig and James Finn Garner spoofed the Ozzie Guillen debacle in Miami.

The site also has links to the other Chicago sports site on important stories of the day.

“We’re not looking to replace ESPN and the Tribune for getting the scores,”  Eig said. “We think we can be a road map to tell people what’s out there.”

Here’s why it might work.

Writers will receive a small fee upfront with the chance to receive a portion of  the profits at the end of the year, assuming there are profits. He said  ChicagoSide will be running “a lean operation,” which will help keep it  sustainable.

Given his work as an author, Eig brings a high level of credibility to this endeavor. Can he pull it off? If he does, look for versions of ChicagoSide to pop up in other cities.