Josh Hamilton has made great suckers out of many people.
Over the past few years the Texas outfielder spoke constantly about how God helped him lick his drug and alcohol abuse when the only thing Hamilton was licking one sticky night in an Arizona bar was whipped cream off women's breasts.
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| There was plenty of applause for Josh Hamilton, but perhaps it was premature. (Getty Images) |
Well, someone's got to do it.
• Hamilton admits relapse, regrets incidentSuch a bar scene is a typical Friday night for Whitney Houston, but wasn't Hamilton supposed to be the athlete prototype for recovery and spiritual awakening?
Hamilton and many in the media for years have told us about The Miracle that is Josh. Many believed the persistent and fantasy-filled storyline that Hamilton had beaten an alcohol and crack addiction despite the severity being so dire he once bounced a check to a drug dealer and engaged in crack binges.
The media wasn't the only entity portraying Hamilton as a former addict-turned-family-values Christian man. Hamilton played the religion card to anyone who would listen.
Hamilton called his recovery a "God thing." He has talked of Jesus helping him beat the drugs and there wasn't a drink in four years. Hamilton has appeared in Christian videos and spoke repeatedly of his faith and family.
Hamilton was a tall tale, but he was also a hypocrite in the mold of other religion-slinging men who speak of family values while having a little something-something on the side.
Hamilton is no different from the Mark Sanfords or John Ensigns who instruct others how to live their lives while failing to practice what they preach.
There is sympathy for Hamilton's drug-soaked past and embarrassing plight but he remains a multipronged drug loser punished repeatedly by baseball. There are first-time offenders and then there's Hamilton, who has become as familiar with peeing in a cup as he is entering the batter's box.
And the sanctimony is almost as bad as the drug use.
"Baseball is third in my life right now," Hamilton stated in a 2007 ESPN.com story, "behind my relationship with God and my family. Without the first two, baseball isn't even in the picture. ..."
In that article Hamilton mentioned his faith and family a number of times, and he has done so many more since. There are online videos featuring Hamilton speaking about his dedication to his wife.
I'm thinking the young, whipped-creamed lady wasn't her.
Suckers, indeed.
One of the more interesting aspects of the Hamilton story is that Hamilton is the kind of athlete fans and media normally despise. He's covered with tattoos, is a long-time drug user, has been violent and for years wasted his brilliant talent.
Hamilton was arrested in 2005 following a drunken rampage after he punched in the windshield of a friend's truck and tore off the rearview mirror.
Even now some in the media rush to defend him, which is stunning. Mark Whicker, the fine columnist from the Orange County Register, called the person who took the pictures "scum laden" and called the incident a "camera in your keyhole."
Seriously? This wasn't some pervert filming Erin Andrews in a hotel room. Hamilton was in a bar.
If Hamilton's name were Josh Ocho Cinco would he enjoy so much sympathy or would there be mobs begging Roger Goodell to ban Hamilton?
It's just a question.
Anyone who has ever known a drug addict or alcoholic understands the fabled Hamilton story had to be farcical. Drug addicts are con artists and my belief has long been Hamilton's use of religion was just another con.
The key to beating an addiction isn't loudly declaring your faith, it's removing yourself from the environment that caused the addictions in the first place.
The money, the road bunnies, the easy access to alcohol and drugs ... of course Hamilton was going to relapse again. The stunning part is that the media and fans bought Hamilton's words about family values in the first place.
Some of you are skilled savants at generating fake outrage and you'll attempt to claim this column is mocking religion. Or that's it's racist. Or that it's religiously racist. That's what some of you do best. Look for bogeymen and stir up phony resentment.
What this column actually does is mock fairy tales. The media -- with Hamilton's ample help -- tried to build an Aesop's Fable into reality. Then it all came crashing down in a whipped-cream-soaked moment.
And here we are with Hamilton, playing people for suckers.
Again.
