CARSON, Calif. » When Major League Soccer determines its champion today, Haleiwa native Brian Ching hopes to redeem exasperation into perhaps his greatest professional triumph.

Ching’s Houston Dynamo will face David Beckham’s Los Angeles Galaxy in MLS Cup 2011 at the Home Depot Center.

The former Kamehameha Schools standout already has three MLS titles. But Ching enters this game after surviving an early siege of injuries that kept him to his lowest totals in starts (15), minutes (1,242) and goals (5) in six years.

Combining a frustrating 2011 with an injury-filled 2010 — when he just missed the United States’ World Cup roster — increases the personal significance of today’s game.

"Winning MLS Cup probably would be my greatest achievement," said Ching, "not only from a player’s standpoint but also as a leader on the team and as a captain."

As Ching continued, he became contemplative and emotional.

"I’ve been through a lot," the 33-year-old forward said. "To kind of come through that … if we win this MLS Cup … I mean … I don’t know if I’d have the words to describe it."

In the second game of the 2010 season, Ching strained his left hamstring and missed eight weeks. After recovering, Ching became the last player cut from the World Cup pool.

"I don’t think I’ll ever recover from that," Ching said. "I was a member of the team for six years prior. I went to a World Cup before and I was used a lot in qualifying. I thought I was healing and playing well.

"It’s something that will affect me until the day I die."

Ching then began this season by missing 10 of Houston’s first 14 games after tearing a thumb tendon, aggravating his hamstring, separating rib cartilage and contracting plantar fasciitis.

During that span, Ching made only one start and failed to score. In that start, Ching left in the first half after colliding twice with New York Red Bulls goalkeeper Bouna Coundoul.

"This is my fourth season with the Dynamo," defender Geoff Cameron said, "and Brian has had a lot of injuries all four years I’ve been here."

As the injuries mounted, so did the frustration.

"You get a little bit healthy and then you get hurt again," Ching said. "It gets harder and harder to come back. You look at the toll that some of the injuries take on your body and what often creeps in there is, ‘Is it worth it, sometimes?’ "

For Ching, the answer is obvious.

"It’s always about helping my team win, giving 110 percent," Ching said. "If I don’t do that, I’m not going to be a good player anymore. That’s the philosophy I’ve always lived by and will for the rest of my career.

"If I give up on that, it’s probably time to retire."

That refusal to compromise means exploiting his 6-foot-1 frame in a punishing style of play.

"He’s a big guy and he likes to get in there and bang it out with the defenders," Houston defender Bobby Boswell said. "He knows he’s going to get injured from time to time, but he’s always pretty professional in how he deals with it.

"I think that’s why he keeps rebounding, coming back and doing well."

This season proved no exception. Ching re-entered the starting lineup on June 25 and scored the tying goal in a 2-2 draw against D.C. United. Ching started 14 of the Dynamo’s final 18 games and scored his five goals in a 10-game stretch.

"His determination to get back on the field was impressive to me," Houston coach Dominic Kinnear said. "You don’t really see that he has missed much once he got back."

During the playoffs, Ching proved pivotal against the Philadelphia Union in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

Ching’s through ball freed Calen Carr to score the winning goal in a 2-1 triumph Oct. 30. Then on Nov. 3, Ching’s 13-yard header gave Houston a 1-0 victory that ensured a berth in the conference final against Sporting Kansas City.

In that game Nov. 6, Ching showed that he can also play defense. Late in the game, with Houston holding a 2-0 lead, the Dynamo’s all-time leading scorer made a point of marking Kansas City’s Davy Arnaud deep in the Dynamo’s end.

"I think that’s inspiring to see your marquee player in the attack be one of the guys chasing back," Kinnear said. "It just shows you how much he wants to win."

Enhancing that desire is the memory of a potentially lost season.

"It feels great to be back," Ching said. "I really didn’t expect to be here halfway through the season. Moments like this don’t come around very often."