When does redemption begin? Hamilton vs. Morneau
Baseball heros of today. That was the topic of discussion at our family reunion in Mid-July. The Home Run Derby had just been on television a few nights earlier and we were discussing the merits of Justin Morneau vs. Josh Hamilton as role models for young ballplayers. My dad and I argued the whether Josh Hamilton’s story should be so heavily discussed in the media. I was surprised to hear my dad’s strong advocacy for Hamilton. My dad has been a hard-working, clean athlete his entire life. He raised children who never abused a thing and his grandchildren, so far - God willing, have managed to stay away from drug and alcohol abuse. I only mention this because I would have expected my dad to be a champion of someone like himself, like Justin Morneau. He seemed frustrated when I suggested that it might be too early for Hamilton to be praised so heavily when just 18 months ago he was in yet another bad relapse. I could only remind him that Hamilton is a rare exception to a otherwise devastating condition of drug and alcohol abuse. Jim Souhan said it much better in the paper the very next day. In This season’s best baseball stories made in Minnesota, Souhan reminds StarTribune readers that:
The stories of Justin Morneau, Joe Mauer and Joe Nathan border on boring, because they represent the monotony of perseverance.
It’s an excellent opinion piece. He ends by positing:
If Joe, Joe and Justin had tried crack, they might have become national celebrities for overcoming their addictions.
Redemption is a glamorous story-line, but isn’t it better this way, following three model athletes with no need for it?
As a mother of a young ballplayer, I would choose the influence of three ballplayers who began life redeemed and stayed that way. Youth sports, today, is filled with talented athletes who fall - sometimes inexplicably - to drug and alcohol use. As a mother, I can also rejoice that one young ballplayer did eventually find redemption.
Great post!