MOUNT VERNON – Darryl Strawberry, the eight-time MLB all-star whose career was marred by drug and alcohol addiction, will be coming to Mount Vernon Nazarene University’s Chapel Auditorium on Wednesday night to talk about how his relationship with God changed his life.
Strawberry will speak at 7:30 p.m. on behalf of North Central Ohio District Church of the Nazarene Family Camp.
Strawberry was the MLB’s Rookie of the Year in 1983 after being selected first in the 1980 MLB Draft. He hit 335 home runs in his 17-year major league career and won four World Series titles – three with the New York Yankees and one with the New York Mets.
But as Strawberry experienced success on the field, his life off the field became increasingly tumultuous.
He grew up with an abusive father, which led him to begin drinking alcohol and smoking marijuana by the age of 13. This drug use escalated when he hit the major leagues, and he began using cocaine on his first road trip with the Mets.
Strawberry was divorced several times and also battled colon cancer during the final stages of his pro career, all while continuing to chase a lifestyle of addiction. He was suspended three times by the MLB for substance abuse.
After Strawberry’s baseball career ended in 1999, he spent years shuffling in and out of rehab facilities, eventually serving prison time in 2002. It wasn’t until he met his wife, Tracy, at a narcotics anonymous convention, that he found the urge to turn his life around.
Since their marriage in 2006, Tracy and Darryl have become ordained Christian ministers. They tour the country and spread their message of “healing through a relationship with Christ.”
“My message is God must increase while I must decrease,” Strawberry said in a press release. “If I need to get somewhere in life, I must decrease, and let him lead my life or I can never fulfill the promises.”
Strawberry is also a New York Times best-selling author, as he detailed his journey in his book ‘Straw: Finding My Way.’
Strawberry will share his story and discuss his religious enlightenment on Wednesday night. The event will be free, no tickets required.
The former big-leaguer will be the opening speaker for the North Central Ohio District Church of the Nazarene Family Camp, which will continue through Sunday. North Central Ohio District Church of the Nazarene represents over 60 Nazarene churches from Powell, Ohio, to Lake Erie.
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