Darryl Strawberry

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Darryl Eugene Strawberry (born March 12, 1962) is a former baseball player who is well-known both for his play on the baseball field and for his controversial behavior off it. He was born to Monica and Michael Strawberry and lived a middle-class suburban life with his family.

Throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, Strawberry was one of the most feared sluggers in the game, known for his prodigious home runs and his intimidating presence in the batter's box with his 6-foot-6 frame and his long, looping swing. During his 17 year career, he helped lead the New York Mets to one World Series championship in 1986 and the New York Yankees to three World Series championships in 1996, 1998, 1999.

A popular player during his career, Strawberry was voted to the All-Star Game eight straight times from 1984-1991.

[edit] Background and early career

Strawberry, a native of Los Angeles who played high school baseball for the Crenshaw High Cougars along with Chris Brown, and against Eric Davis at Fremont High and Chili Davis at Dorsey High (all future fellow big leaguers), was drafted first overall in the 1980 draft by the New York Mets.

Employing a distinctive batting stance with a high leg kick, Strawberry rose through the Mets system and reached the major league level in 1983, posting 26 home runs, 7 triples, and 74 runs batted in, while hitting for a .257 average. He was named the National League's Rookie of The Year. In 1984, he made it to the All-Star game for the first time, and once again hit 26 home runs, this time driving in 97.

[edit] The prime years

Strawberry's Mets from 1984-1990 formed one of the premier teams in the National League, finishing either first or second in the division every year. But as good as the Mets were on the field, they constantly feuded off the field. Despite this, Strawberry remained an iconic figure in not only New York City, but across America. He was loathed by opposing fans, but beloved by New Yorkers and young fans across the country.

During the period from 1983 to 1990, Strawberry was very popular, with his image used on action figures (Kenner's Starting Lineup), posters and banners. He was also known for his disruptive behavior. He got into a physical altercation on team picture day with team captain Keith Hernandez[1] and in the midst of a war of words with infielder Wally Backman, threatened to "bust that little redneck in the face". He often overslept and was late or missed team workouts. He publicly complained about Manager Davey Johnson after he was lifted for Kevin Mitchell in a double switch during the 10th inning of Game 6 of the 1986 World Series, just minutes after their improbable comeback from the brink of elimination to win the game.

In 1985, despite missing 40 games due to an injury to his right thumb, he hit 29 home runs but the Mets fell 5 games behind the St. Louis Cardinals in the NL East.

In 1986, Strawberry hit 27 homers and had 99 RBIs as the Mets won the 1986 World Series.

In 1987, Strawberry hit 39 home runs and stole 36 bases, joining the exclusive 30-30 club, at the time becoming one of only 10 players in baseball history to accomplish the feat. In addition to that, he hit 32 doubles and drove in 104 runs. Despite this, the Mets barely missed the playoffs.

In 1988, Strawberry once again hit 39 home runs to lead the National League. He also drove in 101 runs and led the league in slugging percentage at .545 and OPS at .911. He finished a very close second in MVP voting to the Dodgers' Kirk Gibson. Strawberry led the Mets to the playoffs, losing to the Dodgers in seven games in the National League championship series.

In 1989, Strawberry's offensive numbers declined: He had 29 home runs and 77 runs batted, but only had a .225 average. Nevertheless, the Mets came in a close second place to the Chicago Cubs in the National League East.

In 1990, Strawberry hit 37 home runs, while driving in 108 runs and batting for a .277 average. His Mets, however, came once again in a close second place in the NL's east, losing to the Pittsburgh Pirates by three games.

Strawberry signed as a free agent with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1991, inking a lucrative five-year $22.25 million contract. In California, he was named Big Brother of The Year for that year. After hitting 28 home runs and bringing in 99 runs batted in a successful first year for the Dodgers, injuries and personal problems kept him sidelined for much of the next two seasons, hitting five home runs in each season.

After the 1991 season in which he was only 29 years old he had 280 lifetime homers, drawing comparisons to home run king Hank Aaron. Even with those statistics many baseball observers still felt he was a lazy underachiever. After that season his personal problems escalated and he would not hit his 300th homer for another 6 years.

[edit] His later years

In 1994, he was released in May by the Dodgers and signed with the San Francisco Giants, where he saw limited playing time as he tried to make a comeback, hitting only four home runs and driving in 17 runs that year.

After a suspension from the league at the beginning of 1995 due to his involvement with cocaine^[1], Strawberry signed with the New York Yankees for the stretch run. The next year, Darryl signed with the Saint Paul Saints of the Northern League on May 3, 1996 in an attempt to rehabilitate. On June 2nd the Saints were to face the Duluth-Superior Dukes at Wade Stadium. It was at that time that the Straw hit his first home run for the Saints, at a distance of 522' off of pitcher Pat Ahearne.^[2] Soon thereafter, he found himself back with the Yankees who signed him on July 4, 1996.

With the Yankees, he showed flashes of his former brilliance, as he hit only three homers in his first year, but had 11 home runs and helped his team win the World Series in 1996, alongside former Mets teammates Dwight Gooden and David Cone. In 1997, he did not have any home runs, with his playing time limited by injuries. But in 1998, he had 24 home runs, once again helping the Yankees win the World Series. This was also the year he was diagnosed with colon cancer.^[3] In 1999, he made a comeback from his cancer treatment, but saw limited playing time, hitting 3 home runs. He was unable to perform in the playoffs.

Strawberry attended the Mets' 1986 World Champion team reunion on August 19, 2006, where he and the rest of the team received a standing ovation from fans at Shea Stadium in an on-field ceremony.^[4]

Strawberry worked as an instructor for the New York Mets in 2005.

Strawberry threw out the ceremonial first pitch at Shea Stadium in Game 2 of the National League Championship Series between the Mets and the St. Louis Cardinals on Oct. 15, 2006. He was given a rousing ovation by the Shea Stadium crowd.

Of the 10 postseason series Strawberry played in, he was on the winning team eight times. In 40 postseason games, Strawberry belted nine home runs with 22 RBIs and 20 runs scored. While playing with the Yankees, Strawberry helped carry his team past the Baltimore Orioles in the 1996 ALCS as he blasted three home runs with five RBIs and a .417 average in four games.

Strawberry was the starting right fielder five straight times and appeared at nine All-Star games. Strawberry batted .333 with two stolen bases and two runs in 12 career All-Star at-bats.

[edit] Legal and personal problems

• On May 5, 1972, Ten-year-old Strawberry was caught stealing gum from the local store.

• On January 29, 1987, Strawberry's wife, Kyle Weaver, filed for a legal separation from him in a Los Angeles court. She also accused him of breaking her nose after a game the previous October.^[1] On May 18, 1989, she filed for divorce in Los Angeles. On October 30, 1993, they divorced. The couple had two children together, Diamond and D. J. Strawberry, currently a point guard for the Phoenix Suns.

• On April 7, 1989, Strawberry was sued in Clayton, Missouri by Lisa Clayton (not to be confused with his wife, Lisa Watkins) claiming that he is the father of Clayton's son. On January 10, 1990, blood tests proved that Strawberry was indeed the boy's father.

• On January 12, 1990, two days after blood tests proved he fathered another woman's child, Strawberry was arrested in Los Angeles for allegedly slapping his wife, Lisa, and threatening her with a pistol. On March 9, attorneys announced that no charges would be filed.

• On February 3, 1990, shortly after being arrested for hitting and threatening his wife, Strawberry checked into alcoholic rehab.

• On September 17, 1993, Strawberry was arrested for hitting his girlfriend, Charisse Simon, who was three-months pregnant at the time. Reportedly, witnesses said she had been hitting him with a bat near where he earlier had surgery. She later refused to press charges and, on December 20, they were married. They now have three children Jordan, Jade, and Jewel Strawberry.

• On April 5, 1994, Strawberry failed to show up for an exhibition baseball game with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, (then known as the California Angels) and was not found until that night. The next day, the Dodgers announced that he had a substance abuse problem. Four days later, Strawberry began five weeks of rehabilitation in the Betty Ford Center.

• On December 20, 1994, Strawberry and his agent were indicted for failing to report more than $300,000 of income from autograph and memorabilia shows. On April 29, 1995, Strawberry was ordered to repay $450,000 in back taxes and sentenced to six months of home confinement.

• On February 13, 1995, Strawberry was suspended for 75 days by Major League Baseball after testing positive for cocaine. He was released by the San Francisco Giants on the same day.

• On December 19, 1995, Strawberry was charged in California with failing to make child support payments. When he missed a June 5, 1996 deadline to pay the child support, a Los Angeles judge set a trial date of July 17, at which time Strawberry agreed to use his signing bonus to pay the debt. [2]

• On August 25, 1998, Strawberry was sued by attorney Robert Shapiro for unpaid legal fees related to baseball contract negotiations in 1994. The two resolved the dispute on March 17, 1999.

• On October 1, 1998, Strawberry was diagnosed with colon cancer. Two days later, he had surgery to remove a tumor and 24 inches of his colon. On October 14, doctors announced that cancer had been detected in a lymph node so he would also have to undergo chemotherapy. [3]

• On April 3, 1999, Strawberry was arrested in Tampa, Florida for soliciting sex from a police woman posing as a prostitute and for having a small amount of cocaine. On April 24, he was suspended for 140 days by Major League Baseball for the incident. On May 29, he pleaded no contest to the charges and was sentenced to 21 months probation and community service. [4]

• On January 2, 2000, Strawberry tested positive for cocaine. On March 15, shortly after the test result was announced, Major League Baseball announced that he would be suspended for one year. Six days later, he was in rehab.

• On July 28, 2000, a C.T. scan suggested that Strawberry's cancer had spread to his lymph nodes. The next month, he had surgery to remove a tumor and a kidney on August 7. [5]

• On September 11, 2000, in Tampa, Strawberry tried to drive to see his probation officer after taking painkillers. While driving, he blacked out, rear-ended another car, and then tried to drive away. An off-duty police officer witnessed the episode and arrested him at gunpoint. The next day, Strawberry admitted to the charges and his probation was changed to two years of house arrest. On November 21, he was sentenced to a year of probation and community service. [6]

• On October 25, 2000, Strawberry left a Tampa drug treatment center to use drugs with a female friend violating his house arrest and parole. On November 9, he was sentenced to 40 days in jail with credit for time served. [7]

• On November 3, 2000, Strawberry told a judge in Tampa that he had lost his will to live and had stopped chemotherapy. On November 30, he was released from jail and sent back to rehab. [8]

• On April 2, 2001, Strawberry was arrested for again disappearing from his house arrest drug treatment center in Tampa. On May 1, he was sentenced to more time at a drug treatment center. [9]

• On March 12, 2002, Strawberry was back in jail for violating several non-drug rules at the drug treatment center where he was on probation in Ocala, Florida. On April 29, he was ordered to serve the 22-month suspended prison sentence from 1999. [10]

• On September 17, 2005, Strawberry reported his sport utility vehicle had been stolen from a Miami, Florida gas station but the station's surveillance video showed Strawberry leaving as a passenger in another vehicle. A tipster then told police that Strawberry had earlier left his SUV behind a sports bar and given her the keys. He was later charged with filing a false police report.

• On December 14, 2005, Strawberry's second wife, Charisse, filed for divorce in Hillsborough County, Florida court. [11]

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[edit] Additional details

Strawberry appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated seven times: five times by himself, once with Don Mattingly, and once with Dwight Gooden.

In 2004 the Rebecca Gilman play The Sweetest Swing in Baseball premiered at the Royal Court Theatre in London. The lead character—Dana, as portrayed by Gillian Anderson—adopts the personality and speech of Darryl Strawberry in an attempt to pass herself off as schizophrenic. The title is a reference to Strawberry's playing skills.

He was featured in The Simpsons episode, "Homer at the Bat", in which Bart Simpson and Lisa Simpson taunt Strawberry with his signature mocking chant of "Daaaryyl, Daaaryyl, Daaaryyl!"

Strawberry, Jose Vizcaino, and Ricky Ledee are the only Major League Baseball players to have played for all four current or former New York teams -- the New York Yankees, the New York Mets, the Los Angeles Dodgers, and the San Francisco Giants. Furthermore, Strawberry is the only player to spend his entire career playing for these teams.

Strawberry and Dwight Gooden are recognized as the only players to win a World Series championship with both of New York's current teams.

Strawberry is a featured pro on the second season of the physical reality game show Pros vs. Joes.

He now resides in St. Charles County, Missouri with his wife Tracy whom he married in October 2006. He met Tracy, his third wife, in a drug recovery convention and the two have founded "The Darryl Strawberry Foundation," an organization dedicated to children with autism.

His son, D. J. Strawberry was a star shooting guard for the Maryland Terrapins basketball program from 2004 to 2007. He was drafted by the Phoenix Suns with the 59th selection in the 2007 NBA Draft.

Also mentioned in the Fairly Oddparents TV movie Fairly Oddbaby when Cosmo eats his baseball card and says that he does not taste like a strawberry.

He currently does occasional commentary for the Mets on SportsNet New York.

[edit] See also

• List of Major League Baseball players with 1000 RBI
• 30-30 club
• List of Major League Baseball home run champions
• Major League Baseball hitters with three home runs in one game
• List of sportspeople sanctioned for doping offences

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Darryl Strawberry Official Website
• Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference
• The Straw Stirs - Tom Watson
• Strawberry's Field Forever Darryl Strawberry Then and Now, A Tribute to Darryl Strawberry