Josh Hamilton was the first overall pick in the 1999 Major League Baseball
draft by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, receiving a $3.96 million signing
bonus. He was an unlikely candidate for a future drug addict;
unfortunately, adversity struck his life and young career in the form of
numerous injuries. In 2001, he was involved in a car accident that
placed him on injured reserve. In his first three seasons, he missed a
total of two hundred and thirty-six games because of injuries. During
this time he self-medicated with the destructive coping mechanisms of
drugs and alcohol. As a result, Hamilton tested positive for substance
abuse, was suspended, and put into a treatment program.
However, this did not stop his addictive behavior. In 2004, Major
League Baseball suspended him indefinitely for violating the joint drug
treatment and prevention program. At this point he had become a full
blown addict, the substance abuse that initially begun while he was
trying to cope with the injuries that stalled his promising career had
become the agent of his career destruction. His depression worsened.
Finally in 2005, he hit rock bottom, waking up on his grandmother’s
doorstep after what would be his final crack cocaine binge. Hamilton
had experienced a gigantic setback and his future was very dim.
He chose a road that led to recovery and his comeback in baseball.
In an ESPN article about his story he describes his comeback as, “it’s a
God thing. It’s the only possible explanation.” In that same article
he describes two dreams that encompass his journey back from addiction.
“I was fighting the devil, an awful-looking thing. I had a stick or a
bat or something and every time I hit the devil, he’d fall and get back
up. Over and over I hit him, until I was exhausted and he was still
standing.
I woke up in a sweat, as if I’d been truly fighting and the terror
that gripped me makes that dream feel real to this day. I’d been alone
for so long, alone with the fears and emotions I worked so hard to
kill. I’m not embarrassed to admit that after I woke up that night, I
walked down the hall to my grandmother’s room and crawled under the
covers with her. The devil stayed out of my dreams for seven months
after that. I stayed clean and worked hard and tried to put my marriage
and my life back together. I got word in June 2006 that I’d been
reinstated by Major League Baseball and a few weeks afterward, the devil
reappeared.
It was the same dream with an important difference. I would hit him
and he would bounce back up, the ugliest and most hideous creature you
could imagine. This devil seemed unbeatable; I couldn’t knock him out.
But just when I felt like giving up, I felt a presence by my side. I
turned my head and saw Jesus, battling alongside me. We kept fighting
and I was filled with strength. The devil didn’t stand a chance.
You can doubt me, but I swear to you I dreamed it. When I woke up, I
felt at peace. I wasn’t scared. To me, the lesson was obvious: Alone,
I couldn’t win this battle. With Jesus, I couldn’t lose.”
His reinstatement was just the beginning of his remarkable comeback.
In 2008 he was selected to his first All Star team, where he also
participated in the Home Run Derby, setting an opening round record of
28 home runs and finishing with the second most home runs of all time in
Derby history with 35.
His Home Run Derby explosion introduced Josh to the public in a big
way furthering his comeback. He has been selected to the All Star team
for three straight years (2009-2011). In 2010, he won several single
season honors in the American League including the Batting Title, ALCS
MVP and most impressively MVP of the entire American League. The man
who almost lost his life and career to addiction has now become one of
baseball’s biggest stars. In addition to his personal success, he has
led the Texas Rangers, who had never won an American League pennant, to
the past two American League pennants and World Series appearances
(2010-2011). The comeback is still continuing with Josh and only in
time will his full success be known.
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