Josh Hamilton dives off the wagon

[ceeps04]

He finally put the bible down long enough to have some fun. And if your gonna fuck up your sobriety you might as well do it with body shots off a girl with some big tits.

http://deadspin.com/5332801/the-devil-is-still-in-josh-hamilton-update/gallery/

[Absolutely]

I saw that earlier, and was going to post it but was too lazy.
That bar looks deserted.

Where is your Jesus now?
Once a Crackhead, always a Crackhead.

[moegolden]

the sad part is that he doesn't know for sure if it was just alcohol that night. I guess that doesn't matter to people concerned with alcoholism, but I'd say if there were ever pics of him doing crack again, he would have gotten released.

[Chino Kapone]

Must have broken up with his wife.

Looks like fun to me.... Cause if you're gonna do something wrong, do it right.

[ceeps04]

apparently he still is with his wife


Texas Rangers outfielder Josh Hamilton acknowledged a January bar incident Saturday in which he became drunk and was photographed with several women, not including his wife, in lurid poses in Tempe, Ariz

Josh Hamilton and David Ortiz each had opportunities to clear their conscience Saturday, but only one -- Hamilton -- sounded like a human being, writes Howard Bryant. Story

"I'm embarrassed about it. For the Rangers, I'm embarrassed about it. For my wife, my kids," Hamilton said in Anaheim, Calif., before the Rangers played the Los Angeles Angels. "It's one of those things that just reinforces about alcohol.

"Unfortunately, it happened. It just reinforces to me that if I'm out there getting ready for a season and taking my focus off the most important thing in my recovery, which is my relationship with Christ, it's amazing how those things creep back in."

The photos were first posted by Deadspin.com on Saturday morning.

"Honestly, I hate that this happened," he said. "But it is what it is. You deal with it. I realized that, obviously, I'm not perfect, in this ongoing struggle, battle, that is very real. A lot of people don't understand how real it is."

Hamilton, 28, won't face discipline from the Rangers.


“
I don't feel like I'm a hypocrite. I feel like I'm human. I got away from the one thing that keeps me straightened out and going in the right direction.

”
-- Josh Hamilton

Hamilton, who had been in Arizona preparing for spring training, told the team of the incident the next day.

"As soon as it happened, I called my support system -- my wife, the Rangers, MLB and told them what had happened," he said Saturday. "I was absolutely open and honest about it."

General manager Jon Daniels spoke with Hamilton in the clubhouse Saturday before they addressed the media, and said later the tone of their conversation had a different kind of emotion than the one in January because of the time Hamilton's had to think about it.

"I'd hesitate to say it's something we're going to put behind us, but we're not going to allow this to become a distraction the rest of the season and we'll try to move on as best we can," Daniels said.

Hamilton, who hadn't had a drink since Oct. 6, 2005, was chosen as the No. 1 draft pick by the Tampa Bay Rays as an 18-year-old in 1999.

Out of baseball for three years while serving suspensions and getting clean, Hamilton reached the majors in 2007 with the Cincinnati Reds. He was traded to Texas in December 2007 for pitcher Edinson Volquez.

Rangers outfielder Josh Hamilton was in Arizona to prepare for spring training in January when he was photographed at a bar in the Phoenix area.
In a July 2007 interview with ESPN The Magazine, Hamilton described his fight to overcome alcohol and drug abuse, which helped pave his way back to the major leagues.

"How am I here?" Hamilton asked then. "I can only shrug and say, 'It's a God thing.' It's the only possible explanation."

Hamilton said the encouragement and support of his wife helped during his recovery process.

"I'd go five or six months without picking up a ball or swinging a bat," he said in the interview. "By then, I'd been in rehab five or six times -- on my way to eight -- and failed to get clean. I was a bad husband and a bad father, and I had no relationship with God. Baseball wasn't even on my mind."

Hamilton's performance at the 2008 Home Run Derby was one of the compelling storylines of last season, when he crushed the first-round record with 28 home runs, at one point going deep on 13 swings in a row.

"I don't feel like I'm a hypocrite. I feel like I'm human," he said Saturday. "I got away from the one thing that keeps me straightened out and going in the right direction."

When asked whether he will make a formal apology to his teammates in private, Hamilton said: "More than likely. I don't necessarily know when it would be, but I won't let it linger too long. What I do off the field affects my teammates and the name of this organization. They know who I am and what I want to accomplish.

[lockjaaaaww]

Well at least he had fun fucking up.

[Mother Shucker]

Well, at least now he has an excuse for eating ass all season long. Wasted my first round pick in my money league on that douche.

[Steam]

Well, at least now he has an excuse for eating ass all season long. Wasted my first round pick in my money league on that douche.

Don't blame him because you made a fucking awful pick. Holy shit. Hamilton in the first round? I hope it was a huge league (and/or a deep AL-only league) and you had the last pick. Only way that could be justified. There was no adequate sample size for him. Plus, he faltered down the stretch last year. Fucking putrid selection on your part.

Anyway, I feel bad for Hamilton. A friend of mine worked at the rehab center that he went to years ago and said that he was a very stand up guy. Sure, he gets a little too preachy with the "God" talk but I don't wish him any ill will because of that.

[Mother Shucker]

1. Hanley Ramírez The Rebels
2. José Reyes Cookie Won't...
3. Albert Pujols A La Gee Whiz
4. David Wright CHIN MUSIC
5. Miguel Cabrera ballbreakers
6. Jimmy Rollins PEQUA BOMBERS
7. Chase Utley K Corner
8. Ryan Braun Golden Dragons
9. Mark Teixeira Caseys Panthers
10. Josh Hamilton North Babylo...
11. Brandon Phillips The Hammers
12. Grady Sizemore Joe's Kids
13. Dustin Pedroia Team MGshady
14. Carlos Beltrán Speonk Shedboys
15. Ryan Howard PineTar Rage
16. Manny Ramírez Delta House
17. Lance Berkman MADDYS YANKEES

Could have been worse, could have got Reyes. Meh, I thought he would have a HUGE year. I guess I was wrong. I am doing OK though, in third and right on second places ass.

[Steam]

1. Hanley Ramírez The Rebels
2. José Reyes Cookie Won't...
3. Albert Pujols A La Gee Whiz
4. David Wright CHIN MUSIC
5. Miguel Cabrera ballbreakers
6. Jimmy Rollins PEQUA BOMBERS
7. Chase Utley K Corner
8. Ryan Braun Golden Dragons
9. Mark Teixeira Caseys Panthers
10. Josh Hamilton North Babylo...
11. Brandon Phillips The Hammers
12. Grady Sizemore Joe's Kids
13. Dustin Pedroia Team MGshady
14. Carlos Beltrán Speonk Shedboys
15. Ryan Howard PineTar Rage
16. Manny Ramírez Delta House
17. Lance Berkman MADDYS YANKEES

Could have been worse, could have got Reyes. Meh, I thought he would have a HUGE year. I guess I was wrong. I am doing OK though, in third and right on second places ass.

Yeah, he got injured but Reyes would still have been the right pick in the top 5. Not a fan of mixed leagues, did my first legitimate one in a while this year and can only find my initial spreadsheet that I did in January. Hamilton was 13th ranked hitter on my board but a number of pitchers were ahead since I couldn't properly adjust the dollar values for some of the shitty categories that the commish selected.

Looking at where you picked and who was left you can't be faulted too much. I liked Teixeira where I saw him slipping to in most drafts but obviously that wasn't an option for you. I probably would have went with Pedroia or Kinsler, but neither of them have been world beaters this year either.

[Mother Shucker]

Tex was next on my cue. For me it was a toss up between Crackhead, Sizemore, and Beltran.

Oh, and it is not a 5x5, it is a point league.

[LBF]

1. Hanley Ramírez The Rebels
2. José Reyes Cookie Won't...
3. Albert Pujols A La Gee Whiz
4. David Wright CHIN MUSIC
5. Miguel Cabrera ballbreakers
6. Jimmy Rollins PEQUA BOMBERS
7. Chase Utley K Corner
8. Ryan Braun Golden Dragons
9. Mark Teixeira Caseys Panthers
10. Josh Hamilton North Babylo...
11. Brandon Phillips The Hammers
12. Grady Sizemore Joe's Kids
13. Dustin Pedroia Team MGshady
14. Carlos Beltrán Speonk Shedboys
15. Ryan Howard PineTar Rage
16. Manny Ramírez Delta House
17. Lance Berkman MADDYS YANKEES

Could have been worse, could have got Reyes. Meh, I thought he would have a HUGE year. I guess I was wrong. I am doing OK though, in third and right on second places ass.


It could definitely have been worse. I'm in a 10 team, NL&AL head to head league*. I had the #9 pick in the first round (reverse order in second round, etc). Three of my top 5 were Jimmy Rollins (1st round), Brandon Webb (3rd) and Russell Martin (5th). Immediately following the draft, everyone in the league thought my team was the most stacked top to bottom. Two months later, Rollins is still hitting .215, Webb is crippled and Martin decided to stop getting extra-base hits. That, my friends, is a snakebitten draft.




*We have 10 hitting categories and 10 pitching categories, so you see quite a few starting pitchers go in the 2nd-5th round.